Sallie Pictures

bluejay feather

SHOWS

RE-DISCOVER “The Magic of Sallie Ellington Middleton”

During the 70's and 80's Sallie Ellington Middleton was considered one of the top wildlife watercolor artists in the nation. Her remarkable eye for detail (as well as her stories about her subjects) made her work extremely popular with art collectors. As one enthusiastic buyer said, “Once a prospective client sees her work, the sale is closed.” A reporter recently stated "There are artist, good artist, and then there is Sallie Middleton." An interior decorator said, "Her work is fresh and very apealing."

Sallie Middleton, passed away August 7,2009 at her childhood home in Chunn's Cove, North Carolina. She was a prolific artist. She won numerous awards for her work. Her work can be found in such museums as the Gibbes Art Museum in Charleston, S. C., the Mint Museum in Charlotte, N.C., Magnolia Gardens in Charleston, S.C, and the Village Galleries in Asheville, N. C. It has also been featured in many magazines and calendars. A book about the artist, The Magical Realm of Sallie Ellington Middleton by Celestine Sibley, was published in 1980, and Sallie illustrated three other books.

Her style of painting and determination to do what others could not have placed her in a special category of wildlife artist.

All but about 10 paintings have a bluejay feather hidden somewhere in the picture. This has become a special trade mark of Sallie's.

Her paintings always take weeks rather than hours. You will not only notice the details of the subject but also it's surroundings. Sallie as a child was taken into the woods by her father and taught to look for what most of us miss. When a neigbor brought her a wounded bird or animal to nurse back to health, she immediately began to research and study the subject's habitat. This made the painting much more realistic.

Sallie was born in Washington, D.C., but was reared just outside of Asheville, N.C. and Charleston, S.C.. Her uncle Douglas Ellington, a highly regarded painter influenced Sallie to put her skills to work. At 6 years old Sallie painted her first painting a clematis for which she earned $10. "I painted for fun, for the praise of my father."

From June 2005 to May 2007 Sallie attended 31shows, which drew over 5900 fans. Some of Sallie's sold out prints have increased in value by 30 times the original selling price.

SOME OTHER SHOWS WERE AT: Frame of Mind, Myrtle Beach, SC, Village Galleries, Waynesville, NC, Camden & Moss, Wilson, NC,Frame Masters Gallery, Shelby, NC, House of Frames & Paintings, Columbia, SC, Wildbird Center, Carey, NC, (The pictures were lost, if you have any from these shows please email and we will include in this section.)

To click SHOWS tag, you can see pictures of shows.

To click Sallie's pictures, you can see more which were taken over the years for promoting
Sallie and her work.

Ashville Citizen, N.C.

Wilson, N.C.

Elizabethtown, N.C.

Waynesville, N.C.