Island Treasures: Ginger Sandell
How many people have you known who could create fine art as well as they “crunch numbers?” Ginger Sandell can do both, and do them well!
Fully retired from her CPA career in 2020, Ginger is finally able to focus all her energy on her first love, painting. She started drawing at the age of three, and painting in 1979. At that time, she was self-taught, and was able to earn some income from it, but as a single mom, she needed more.
In 1984, Ginger went back to school, receiving her bachelor of business degree at University of Hawai‘i at Hilo. She went on to get her certified public accountant license, and later, an MBA at University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. She started her own CPA practice in 2004. Altogether, Ginger worked in the field of finance for more than 30 years. During that time, her art was on hold, because she was busy with her accounting business.
Some of her paintings were hanging in her office, and one day in 2010 a client asked if she had painted them. She answered, “Yes, but I’m not painting anymore.” Her client suggested that she join the West Hawaii Plein Air Painters, and she did.
“The paintings started pouring out from all these decades of being repressed. I realized I wanted to study art, so I enrolled in the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. I jumped into a master’s program online, while running my CPA practice. I graduated in 2019 with my master’s in fine art,” Ginger says.
After retiring as a CPA, Ginger immediately got busy as a professional painter.
Originally, Ginger used acrylics—now she is painting with oils. She uses a technique called painterly realism. Ginger expresses, “I want to portray the beauty of the natural world. I like to do that through my paintings. It’s so much joy to paint—it’s very meditative, almost like the past is gone, the future doesn’t exist, the only thing that exists is the canvas in front of me. I want to share my joy with others. Whenever I sell a painting, I feel joy in my spirit—my art goes off into the world, and the paintings give joy to the people who collect them.”
Most of Gingerʻs paintings are of nature. She loves light on water, and reflections, taking her own photos for reference. Ginger reflects, “Creating art is a gift. I’m thankful for it.”
Ginger’s paintings are in Glyph Gallery in Hōlualoa and One Gallery in Hilo. She also has an online art store, and has an exhibition in San Diego in September.
Ginger Sandell Fine Art
GingeSandellFineArt.com
