Sharon Sprung

New York painter Sharon Sprung is known for her luminous and life-like portraits. She painted the official White House portrait of First Lady Michelle Obama, unveiled in 2018. Her subjects are wide ranging and have included accomplished individuals in the fields of business, academia, and government, as well as evocative portraits of children and women.

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New York painter Sharon Sprung is known for her luminous and life-like portraits. She painted the official White House portrait of First Lady Michelle Obama, unveiled in 2018. Her subjects are wide ranging and have included accomplished individuals in the fields of business, academia, and government, as well as evocative portraits of children and women.

Sprung studied painting at Cornell University, the Art Students League, and the National Academy of Design. She has had numerous one-person and group exhibitions in galleries throughout the United States. Her work has also been shown in group shows at the Brooklyn Museum; the Pastel Society of America, New York; the Knoxville Museum of Art; Chicago International Art Exhibition, Navy Pier, Chicago; Museum of National Arts Foundation, Washington, D.C.; 10th Congress of the International Association of Art, Helsinki, Finland; Hudson River Museum, Yonkers, New York; Allied Artists of America, New York City; Salmagundi Club, New York City; and the National Arts Club, New York City.

Sprung’s portrait of Jeannette Rankin, the first congresswoman elected in the United States, hangs in the U.S. House of Representatives, a commission she was awarded after a nationwide competition. She was also invited by the U.S. Department of State and The Academy of Art in St. Petersburg, Russia to display her portrait “Aude” at the Hermitage and lecture about American Portraiture.

• Selected Commissions & Collections

  

  Sharon's work is included in the permanent collections of:

  • AT&T

  • Chase Manhattan Bank

  • Princeton University

  • The University of Virginia

  • Scott Bennett, Inc.,

  • Shearman and Sterling

  • Bell Labs

  • The United States House of Representatives

• Honors & Awards

  

  • Currently serving as Vice President of the Artist's Fellowship, 2016 to present

  • Award of Excellence, Category of Fine Art, by the Publisher of Creative Quarterly, the Best of Art & Design Quarterly 2015

  • "Portrait of a Girl in Window" won First Honorable Mention, Members Only Competition, "Outside the Box" category, The Portrait Society of America, 2015

  • "Untangled" won Fifth Honorable Mention, Members Only Competition, Non-commissioned Portrait Category, The Portrait Society of America, 2015

  • "The Curious Chinese Boxes" won First Honorable Mention, Members Only Competition, Still Life Category, The Portrait Society of America, 2015

  • Lifetime Achievement Award, The National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts, 2012

  • "Sari" won Third Place, Members Only Competition, Nude Category, The Portrait Society of America, 2012

  • Appointed Member of the Board, The Artist's Fellowship, 2011

  • "Reclining Girl" awarded the Purchase Prize and the William Bouguereau Award by the Art Renewal Center, 2011

  • "Broken Window" won First Place, International Portrait Competition of the Portrait Society of America, 2011

  • 2nd Prize, International Artist Magazine's Challenge No. 58 competition, "Favorite Subjects," 2010

  • Judges' Excellence Award, Blossom - Art of Flowers Competition, 2007

  • First Place, Portrait & Figure Category, The Artist's Magazine, 2006

  • Honorable Mention, Third International Art Salon, Art Renewal Center, 2006

  • Awards Finalist, The Artist's Magazine, 2006

  • Jury's Selection, Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition, 2006

  • Awards Finalist, Second International Art Salon, Art Renewal Center, 2005

  • Awards Finalist, The Artist's Magazine, 2002

  • Stacey Foundation Grant, 1982

  • Greenshields Foundation Grant, 1975

• Selected Works