Sally Maxwell
Each animal has its own distinct personality, and there’s no better way to see it than through Maxwell’s wildlife art. These are master works created by an artist who pioneered the use of scratchboard as a medium for fine art. Filled with detail, spirit, and story, each work is a representation of the wild natural world that you can keep in your own home.
Get the full art gallery experience online, with incredible art from a luxury dealer, all from the comfort of your couch. Shop Sally Maxwell’s art at Marcus Ashley Gallery today.
About Sally Maxwell
The artist’s most formative years were spent on the New England coastline, walking the shores and woodlands with her father. He instructed her as to the names and biology of the wildlife, flora and fauna they encountered, and she fell in love with it all. Subsequent moves and changes in her life meant she concentrated more on her scientific studies and then on motherhood. Her thirst for learning and love of nature did not die.
During her early career, she channeled her creativity as a graphic artist and designer, a background which still shows in her work. Her move into the fine arts was precipitated by her discovery of scratchboard, over 48 years ago. Her passion for the medium drove her to discover the formula for the addition of color.
This same passion drives her today. Her career in Fine Art Prints led to Collector plates and Figurines. For over 15 years her subject matter was suburban animals, puppies, kittens and baby woodland creatures. Her work was the feature of articles in Plate Collector magazine, American Artist and the book “Everything You Need to Know About Collectibles” under her pen name of Sally Miller.
As her path changed again, so did her subject matter, but not her medium. A return to her small town and country roots in midlife rekindled her second passion, the outdoors and nature. A husband, who introduced her to Texas flora and fauna, inspired her and her subjects took on a new dimension. Some of that passion was also fueled by the discovery of a “new” kind of scratchboard.
Ampersand Art Materials’ Scratchbord was a brand new medium in 1998. The substantive nature of it compared to the scratchboard she previously used enabled her to manipulate her colors more without warping. She also discovered removal tools and methods as she began experimenting. A union was formed between Sally and Ampersand soon after their mutual discovery. She wrote instructional booklets for them, as well as “how-to” kits, and does product development as a by-product of her experimentation.
In her early years, Sally had followed the footsteps of the majority of wildlife artists and treated her subjects as landscapes with animals in them. Slowly her animals began to dominate. The primary focus is the animal or bird persona or the relationship between several of them. She had rediscovered her design sense and still treats her subject with extreme photorealism, but does it as a minimalist. Her works have impact from close and distanced perspectives.
Self representing her original work at national showings since 1999, she has won many awards and honors from juried art shows. She has been featured in Wildlife Art Magazine, Art in America and has added Giclee prints to her line of works available. Induction into the prestigious Society of Animal Artists in February of 2009 and Signature membership level in 2012 has started her on the road to accreditation and public acknowledgement of her talents. Her Award of Excellence in 2014 has solidified her position within the Animal Art field. Signature level in American Women Artists has also lent prestige to her works. They have appeared in many museums nationwide. At the inception of the International Society of Scratchboard Artists, she was chosen as one of the first seven Masters in the group. She is now Represented in several major Galleries. 2016 saw the release of a 160 page retrospective book “Scratching The Surface” from Rose Fredrick Press. It follows 50 years of Sally’s work in the scratchboard medium.
Over these years Sally has contributed much time, money, and effort through donations to many organizations such as CCA, Ducks Unlimited, Dallas Ecological Foundation, Dallas Safari Club, as well as to her local arts and animal welfare organizations. Giving to causes she has a passion for is fulfilling for her.
Lately, she has grown in her own photographic abilities as well and works exclusively from her own photos whenever possible. Many cameras and gadgets are constantly by her side. Travel to preserves and sanctuaries at home and abroad are frequent. Right in her own backyard, she and husband George are building their own private sanctuary with help from the Bureau of Land Management in Texas. It includes a lake and wetlands plus pristine virgin woods. Her new studio sits at its edge, overlooking the lake and her beloved wildlife. Already Eastern Turkey, Whitetail Deer, Flickers, Mexican Tree Ducks, Painted Buntings and most common woodland creatures visit their feeders on a daily basis.
Photo & Video Gallery
Questions Answered
Sally Maxwell utilizes scratchboard and sharp dental tools in order to create the depth of texture you see in her work. Sally starts with a basic texture she calls the “Grey Stage” and works in more and more intricate lines into the scratchboard. After a long process you begin to see the incredible depth that you see in her works.
Sally has been working in scratchboard for 53 years. She is one of the originators in scratchboard being used in fine art works. She helps scratchboard manufacturers perfect their processes to allow for more depth in their products.Recognized as a pioneer in scratchboard, Sally was one of the first designated as a Master Scratchboard Artist by the International Society of Scratchboard Artists. Also a Master and recognized by American Women Artists as such, she is a Signature member of the Society of Animal Artists and a Silver Signature member of Artists Changing Tomorrow.
Sally utilizes only 7 colors to achieve the range of colors you see in her work. She utilizes naturally pigmented India Ink to create her original works of art.
Sally Maxwell has always loved nature and this is shown in her work. You will almost always see her works include something from nature and especially things like large animals you may see on safari.Sally has a innate connection with the animal world and regularly travels to exotic locations to photograph her subjects and experience their behavior in the wild.
Scratchboard is a medium that is over 100 years old, but has usually been used as a commercial art and illustrating medium. With the addition of color 30+ years ago and the development of a “new” scratchboard that has a rigid subsurface, it has made its way into the Fine Art category. It is now accepted in Museum shows all over the world and enjoys experimentation by many artists in varying techniques.
Basically it consists of a rigid surface covered by white Kaolin clay which is sanded smooth and then a layer of black India ink is applied using an airbrush. This surface is cut through using anything from a sharp pin to dental tools or Doctors’ scalpel. specific tools are made and sold for use on the board, plus artists are continually experimenting to find new things which remove the black ink surface
- 2Wild
- Aleksandra Rozenvain
- Alexander Volkov
- Ana Moran
- Barak Rozenvain
- Boris Kramer
- Archer
- Dr. Seuss
- Eric Christensen
- Fabio Napoleoni
- Frogman Art
- Gabe Leonard
- Harold Braul
- Jack Storms
- John Mark Gleadow
- Jon Paul
- Loet Vanderveen
- Lyman Whitaker
- Mackenzie Thorpe
- Malcolm Tibbetts
- Mario Jung
- Markus Pierson
- Maya Eventov
- Books
- Michael Flohr
- Michael Parkes
- Michael Rozenvain
- Michael Summers
- Miri Rozenvain
- New Arrivals
- Paul Lotz
- Rob Gonsalves
- Rolinda Stotts
- Sally Maxwell
- Steve Barton
- Todd White
- Tom Everhart
Ultra Limited Editions
Just like the individual animals they present, there are very few of these ultra limited edition works in the world. Each one only has a run of 5-10 giclee on canvas prints. There’s no better way to represent a one-of-a-kind animal personality than with an ultra rare print of the art depicting them.
Limited Edition
Managing a home can sometimes feel like running the zoo. Now it can look like one too, with high quality giclee on canvas prints by Sally Maxwell that are individually numbered and signed. Each animal portrait has a visible personality behind it and eyes that seem to come alive as you observe them.
Books
Learn more about Maxwell’s life and career and her dedication to the scratchboard medium. With her dedication and collaboration with Ampersand Art Materials, she was the driving force behind scratchboarding becoming a well-recognized and practiced medium in the art scene. Learn about how she did it, along with her technique and dedication to wildlife art.
Bring the Best Contemporary Fine Art Home
With online art consultants, custom framing, and insured international shipping, Marcus Ashley Gallery’s online gallery services make buying great works of art over the internet both easy and pleasant. Anyone can be an art collector with our financing and layaway options. We are the premier destination for discovering and collecting the finest artists of our time, and we strive to make collecting art as fun, accessible, and effortless as possible for our clients.
Chat with one of our online art consultants if you’re not sure what to buy. But rest assured, you’ll never go wrong buying Sally Maxwell art from Marcus Ashley Gallery.
