Emerging Artists | Sally O'Neill - Southwest Art Magazine

“Art is in everyone”

Sally O’Neill, Time to Open, oil, 14 x 11.

This story was featured in the September 2016 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art September 2016 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story.

For many years Sally O’Neill was a piano teacher in Southern California with a deep love for art. She was always looking at art, collecting art, and painting in her free time, but she dreamed of making it her full-time profession.

“My father-in-law, Don O’Neill, was a well-known watercolor artist,” O’Neill says. “One day, I asked him, ‘Do you think anyone can learn to paint well?’ He replied, ‘Art is in everyone.’ I’ll never forget that conversation—it had a huge influence on me. So I went to the art store and spent $250 on supplies. I ventured into something that has been life-changing. It opened a world that brings me so much joy.”

O’Neill has spent the last 18 years immersed in her art, painting scenes throughout the Pacific Northwest and Southern California en plein air and in her home studio in Sandy, OR. She has received numerous awards, including the 2013 People’s Choice Award and the 2014 Southwest Art Award of Excellence at the Plein Air & More show in Cannon Beach, OR. Her work was also accepted into the American Impressionist Society’s national shows in 2014 and 2015.

O’Neill is frequently inspired by light and shadow, which is evident in her landscapes featuring architectural elements. Her love of color is unmistakable, and her California roots penetrate her impressionistic landscapes and still lifes with palpable warmth. “I work on a toned panel, and I like to use a warm shade, usually red, depending on the painting,” O’Neill explains. “I’ll leave some of that color popping through; I rarely cover the whole thing up. It affects the entire look of my painting.

“I feel so fortunate to be able to do what I love,” O’Neill adds. “Art is an incredible journey, and it’s constantly evolving. I love being a part of this world. There’s not a day that I put my paints out that I don’t think, ‘I’m so lucky to do this.’ I hope that joy is reflected
in my work.” —Kelly Beard

representation
Caswell Gallery, Troutdale, OR; Haystack Gallery, Cannon Beach, OR; www.sallyoneill.net.