“I have studied the Old Master’s paintings and I use a combination of their techniques. I paint in layers, through underpainting and overpainting, so that the colour is formed optically by the light passing through the layers. Though I work realistically, my focus has shifted to more abstract concerns, like capturing a quality of light such as the light before a storm, the light at sunset or the diffused light of a forest.
I try to create the feeling one has when light suddenly hits a surface and there is a moment of illumination. I wish to engage the viewer in this sense of mystery, these apparitions of light.”
Sally Clark is a painter, playwright and novelist. She was born in Vancouver, BC. Her father took the family on many trips throughout the province, which developed in her a deep love of the landscape. She has been painting in oils since she was twelve. She completed her B.F.A. degree at York University in Toronto. She lived in Toronto for thirty years and her paintings were exhibited in several galleries during that time.
Clark believes that painting is about communicating the feeling of stillness; how it feels to be here in this moment of time. Her other great passion is the theatre which, in contrast, is about movement through time and space. Clark has written several award-winning plays which have been produced nationally and internationally. Her novel, ‘Waiting for the Revolution” was published by Cormorant Books in 2010.
The Granville Island Cultural Society, the Vancouver East Cultural Centre and the North Vancouver Arts Council have sponsored solo exhibitions of her paintings. Her work has been in many shows at the Federation Gallery in Vancouver, receiving four Honourable Mentions. She received the 2nd Prize at the Federation of Canadian Artists (FCA) POTE (Painting on the Edge) Exhibition in 2016. In 2017, Sally Clark was one of the Finalists for the Kingston Portrait Prize, a national portrait competition.