Meet Sally Terrell | Artist (Scratchboard & Felt)

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sally Terrell and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sally, what is the most important factor behind your success?
Art is definitely a business, and should be treated as such to gain success. But in many ways it is very different from other businesses. You face a lot of rejection as an artist – rejected from juried shows, rejected from prestigious organizations, or from striving to reach a new level within an organization, no sales, negative comments on your work. You have to have a thick skin. I decided long ago that I would not let these rejections deter me. I create art because I love it. On any given day, who knows what a particular judge is going to like. You can’t tie your self esteem to those moments. After so many of those you would surely give up. So I create what I Iike and what gives me joy. And I think people pick up on that energy when they look at it. I think this is a significant factor in my success.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I have the good fortune to be creating 2 art forms that are not terribly well-known, OR they’ve heard of it, but have no idea how it’s done. I have been doing scratchboard for over 7 years and have achieved most of my success there. People don’t realize how much time goes into a piece, and how many layers there are. Scratchboard is a subtractive medium, which means the artist removes layers of ink with different tools (Xacto knives, tattoo needles, fiber brushes, etc) to reveal their design. Colors, like transparent inks and markers, watercolors) can be added in layers and scratched over to give it a 3D effect. I love creating pieces with dramatic lighting, and showing animals in unusual situations, especially birds. My proudest moments have been when I won 2 different awards at ISSA Exhibitions – the Pushing Boundaries award for ” Family Resemblance?” and a Memorial Award for “Charmed”. The other biggie moment was when I won a spot in Artist Magazine’s Best of Drawing competition for “I Am the Monarch of the Tree” which got me a one page spread in their magazine. I was over-the-moon excited about that!
So, how did I get to where I am today? With the help of some amazing people, and practice, practice, practice.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Well, since we live in Oxford, I would start with my favorite places there: StrongArm Bakery for breakfast, Tobacco Wood Brewing for lunch, and Oxford Oaks Distillery’s Verdigris restaurant for dinner. Not far from there, in Creedmoor, is Cedar Creek, an artisans’ compound with amazing art and craft by glassblowers, potters, metal workers, jewelers and more. Further down the road in Durham is Duke Gardens, which is a beautiful place for a stroll, especially in the spring. Not far from there is the Duke Lemur Center. If you like animals, it’s a great place to watch and learn about these adorable creatures. And we might go to Fosters or Guglhupf for lunch. Or if we’re in the mood for fish, we’d go to Saltbox. Moving on to Cary, we would visit the gallery that I’m a member of, Cary Gallery of Artists. Then eat at Academy Street Bistro. Finishing off the tour, we’d go to Raleigh and visit NC Museum of Art and then take a stroll through Dorothea Dix park (in the summer the sunflowers are stunning!) Then top the day off with dinner at Winstons.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
First and foremost – my husband. He is my biggest supporter and cheerleader. He always says he’s my “Theo”, who was Van Gogh’s brother who supported him through all his ups and downs his whole life. Second – after I joined the International Society of Scratchboard Artists, I had two mentors that guided me on my journey. The first was Ginger Gehres. She was kind enough to offer Dr. Jane Steelman and I a one-day workshop at her house. That was all it took. It inspired me to continue doing scratchboard and join ISSA. She gave me advice on pieces to submit for Active level, which I achieved. And some guidance on submitting a piece to my first ISSA Exhibition, which was accepted! The second was Linda Heath Clark, who mentored me for over a year. Her guidance helped me achieve Signature level status. These ladies are very special to me and I am forever grateful to them. I would not be where I am today without the help of these three wonderful humans.

Website: havenhillstudios.com

Instagram: havenhill_studios

Facebook: Havenhill Studios

Image Credits
These are photos of my artwork, 3 of which were mentioned in the paragraphs. “Family Resemblance?” “Charmed” “I Am the Monarch of the Tree” The others are: “Peekaboo!” “It’s OK, I’ve Got You” “Mice to Meet You”