FANG SULLIVAN

ARTIST STATEMENT:

My work is guided by a love of color and a desire to capture the fleeting beauty of everyday life. Growing up in Beijing with artist parents, I was surrounded by art from an early age and later continued my studies at the School of Visual Arts and the Art Students League in New York. These experiences shaped the way I see and paint, helping me blend the traditions of classical Impressionism with a fresh, contemporary sensibility. I often notice subtle, hidden hues in the world around me and bring them forward through an expressive broken-color technique. Working mainly in soft pastel and oil, I enjoy the immediacy and richness of these mediums, which allow me to respond instinctively to light, atmosphere, and the emotions of a moment. My subjects—whether portraits, landscapes, or still-lifes—give me different ways of exploring narrative and perception. When painting people, I spend time observing until a story begins to emerge. While I often start with a vision of the finished work, the emotions I feel while painting become just as essential to what ultimately appears on the canvas.

Bio:

Fang Sullivan is a contemporary figurative artist, classically trained and recognized for her distinctive use of color in both pastel and oil mediums. Guided early on by her artist parents, she went on to earn a BFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York City. Her paintings span portraiture, landscape, and still life, and in both 2023 and 2024 she received first prize in the National Association of Women Artists (NAWA) Celebrating Women Who Tell Our Stories Exhibition. Her work has been exhibited in galleries nationwide, and she actively shares her techniques through demonstrations, virtual workshops, and time-lapse videos on Instagram (@fangsullivan). Fang is an Artist Member of the Salmagundi Club, a Signature Member of the Pastel Society of America and NAWA, an elected Artist Member of the American Artists Professional League (AAPL), and a member of the American Impressionist Society.