A native of West Palm Beach, Florida, Sally Edwards received a BS degree in English Education from Florida State University in 1965. She moved to Atlanta in 1966, married in 1968, and worked in the Atlanta City School System until 1972 when she began her family. Always drawn to the arts, she wrote poetry, studied voice, and enjoyed drawing and painting on a small scale while raising her two daughters. Working out of an attic studio in her home, she began an art on consignment business, Rag Ribbon Rainbow, with her sister, presenting her poetry three dimensionally and giving visual expression to the written word. Edwards self-published two collections of poetry, The Layered Woman in 1988, and Sacred Journey in 1991.
In 1993, Edwards began doing volunteer work at Common Ground, a day facility for people living with HIV Aids, where she assisted with the art program and began working with clay and hand built sculpture. Although creating without any formal instruction was productive and satisfying, she struggled to come to a sense of herself as a serious professional artist. She enrolled in a painting class with Elsie Dresch and put oil on canvas for the first time in 1995. It was liberating and energizing and pushed her to learn and cultivate in a whole new direction.
In February of 1999, Edwards was commissioned to do eight illustrations for a book, Lullaby for Mary by Mildred Greear. The paintings for this simple and deeply wise poem set to music emerged intuitively, almost fully formed, in record time, and Sally has been working with an awakened understanding of herself as an artist and as a woman ever since.
Sally Edwards began to paint seriously full-time in 2002, and her art is deeply influenced by her travels in the US, Canada, Mexico, Ireland, Israel, The Bahamas, Austria, Switzerland Italy and, most recently, France. She continues to be awed and inspired by her exploration of different cultures and environs and the majesty of the human spirit. Her work reflects a response to both an outer and inner journey. Her intent is to continue finding joy and satisfaction in the process as well as the final product. She hopes to bring pleasure and offer insight to the artistic heart and soul of anyone who views her work.
