Sally Garrett

Tell us a little bit about you?
I am currently living and working on Wurundjeri Country, Naarm (Melbourne.) I grew up in Queensland and I have a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in Illustration from the Queensland College of Art. I continued to paint and exhibit, alongside travelling, becoming a mother and working as a visual merchandiser and production assistant for a small boutique in Fitzroy. Its closure amidst Melbourne's long Covid lockdowns allowed me the time to reignite a passion for drawing and painting, firstly creating still life works with oil pastels and then developing these into paintings. I had a successful exhibition in November 2022 at Brunswick Street Gallery, Fitzroy and was named as an affordable artist to collect in 2023 by The Design Files.

What is your favourite drink?
I drink black English Breakfast tea in a thermos while I am painting but at the end of the day I love a cold beer, specifically Coopers Pale Ale!

What inspired you to start painting?
I have been creative since I was very small, I loved drawing and painting and I always wanted to be an artist and was encouraged to do this by my parents and my teachers at school. I enjoyed visiting the Queensland Art Gallery and spent my weekends seeing exhibitions with my parents and also attending art classes. Our home was filled with art work and books and looking back I think my whole family was creative in some way. My paternal Grandmother was English and did beautiful watercolour paintings, which was another strong influence.

What advice would you give other artists/creatives starting out?
Go to see art exhibitions as much as possible, look at art books, magazines and follow other artists on social media. Don't wait for the perfect time or space to create, try to do just a little bit each day, ultimately something will come of it. And keep a notebook!

You can see more of Sally’s Garret’s work here.