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Sandra Bottinelli was born on the shores of New Jersey n 1972, then moved to south Florida in her early teens. Ever since she can remember as if it were innate, she has been pursuing her passion as an artist.

Following her interest in the arts and to expand her talents, she attended college at the University of Michigan, where she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1995. With a desire to experience the world and further her studies, she chose, as many artists have before her, to travel to Europe where she studied the Fine Arts in Salamanca and Barcelona, Spain. Affected by the energy of the museum walls, oil paints became her medium of choice. This experience was to heavily influence her style and aid her in finding herself as a true artist.

After returning from Europe, Sandra moved to Portland, Oregon, where she continued to paint, study and display her work. She quickly became a regional favorite and her works were displayed in numerous galleries and exhibits over the course of seven years. Closing in on the seventh year, Sandra felt the pull to once again be near family and she found herself returning to Florida where she currently resides.

Sandra continues to create works in her studio located in Longwood, Florida. She also teaches object perspective part time at Full Sail University located in nearby Winter Park. Although her studio is not open to the public, you can view her work by appointment. You can reach her at 407.733.3301 or click here to email her.

The Process

Images roll over and over in Bottinelli's mind. It may be weeks until they reach the point where she feels they are supposed to be, paying close attention to details like the brightness of a scarf or the sharpness of a fingernail. It is a dream and she weaves her way in and out of it, through every crevice until the piece is complete in her thoughts. From here the ball starts rolling and Bottinelli figures out how she is going to get the picture from her head onto the canvas.

The artist uses objects in Life as reference or photos that she has taken. If a photo or a desired object isn't close at hand for use as a model, it is sculpted from clay and used as a still life. With the help of photos, real life objects, sculptures, and anything else imaginable, Bottinelli recreates the "dreams" on canvas in oils.

The moods of the images are a very important aspect of Bottinelli's work and she takes great consideration in figuring out what exactly it is she is feeling. "The pictures in my head are like dreams in that they have certain feelings attached to them. It is not necessarily the objects that need to be executed exactly but more the feeling they exude. It is like when you have a dream and a certain person is in it. You know who this person is even if it is not their face. You know who it is because of what you feel, not of what you see."

Bottinelli is a painter of "ideas". Whether she uses animals, landscapes or figures in her work, a certain message is conveyed to onlookers. Bottinelli has said, "The title usually reveals itself midway through the piece although at times it comes days after the painting is completed, but rarely before it is started." Although she will have a general idea of what the piece is about, in the end, the painting has told her all of the details.

"I tell you, the more I think, the more I feel that there is nothing more truly artistic than to love people."

Vincent Van Gogh

"Have no fear of perfection - you'll never reach it."
Salvador Dali