Sarah McGrath is an Australian artist specialising in oil painting, her move into painting full-time, developed from her work in illustration and graphic design.

Sarah lives and works in her studio in the Harbourside suburb of Mosman in Sydney and draws inspiration from the bird life on her daily walks in the national parks around the foreshore.

Painting in oils and excelling in the style of contemporary realism, Sarah’s paintings have an almost photo like quality.

In her still life practice, Sarah is drawn to vintage tableware and fabrics as well as sentimental objects that draw on feelings of nostalgia, her inclusion of small birds and parrots in her paintings add a feeling of movement and curiosity that draws in the eye of the viewer. Sarah’s aim is to capture the everyday narrative of simple objects and birds by rendering light and reflections to create a strong sense of a quiet atmosphere.  Her overall artwork style is achieved through fine detail and traditional painting methods of fine layers and glazes to create a reflective piece of artwork.

Sarah has been selected in a range of art prizes including the inaugural  National Emerging Art Prize, The Lethbridge 20000 Small Scale Art Award,  The Ravenswood Art Prize, Hornsby Art Prize and most recently the Kennedy Art Prize. Sarah has been included in many exhibitions including the recent Inverell Contemporary Exhibition 2024. Many of Sarah’s painting are held in private collections in Australia and overseas.

Kindred Spirits

Kindred Spirits is a collection of still life paintings that explores memory, heritage, and the quiet emotional lives of everyday objects. Each work centers on vintage and antique jugs, vessels once held in steady hands at kitchen tables, and family gatherings. Paired with table linens, wallpaper, and patterned surfaces, these objects become stand-ins for the people and traditions that shaped domestic life across generations.

The exhibition moves between bold, pattern-rich compositions and more subdued, traditional arrangements. The patterned works echo the visual language of past interiors — wallpaper, fabric, and decorative motifs — evoking warmth, personality, and the layered nature of memory itself. In contrast, the quieter pieces offer stillness and space, reflecting moments of pause and reflection. Together, these approaches mirror how we remember: sometimes vividly and colourfully, other times softly and with restraint.

In preserving these objects on canvas, I am preserving stories — not specific narratives, but the feeling of belonging, continuity, and shared history that lives within them.

2025

Solo Exhibition Feathered friends and treasured things Art2Muse Gallery, Woollahra, Sydney

2024

Lane Cove Art Prize – Finalist

Hornsby Art Prize – Finalist

Kennedy Prize – Finalist

Ravenswood Prize – Finalist

Inverell Art Gallery – Finalist – Contemporary Exhibition 2024

Affordable Art Fair

Brisbane – The Toowoomba Gallery Sydney – The Toowoomba Gallery

Sydney Road Gallery – Birthday Exhibition

Sydney Road Gallery – Group Show

2023

Affordable Art Fair

Melbourne – The Toowoomba Gallery Sydney – The Toowoomba Gallery

Group Exhibitions

Sydney Road Gallery

Spotlight Group Show

6th Birthday Group Show

Art and Words Group Show

Hot Summer Nights Group Show

Toowoomba Grammar – Grammar Art Show

The Toowoomba Gallery

Food Still Life Group Show Christmas Group Show

Tyger Gallery – Vintage Group Exhibition

Mosman Art Gallery -Artists of Mosman Group Show

The Corner Store – Finalist, “Inside this Box” GroupShow

2022

Affordable Art Fair

Melbourne – The Toowoomba Gallery

Sydney – The Toowoomba Gallery

Lethbridge 2000 Small Scale Art Awards – Gallery Finalist

Group Exhibitions

Sketch Collective – Opening Group Show

Sydney Road Gallery

Still Life Group Show

Deck theWalls Group Show Studio Select Group Show In the Frame Group Show 5th Birthday Group Show

The Toowoomba Gallery – Trio Group Show

2021

Michael Reid

Finalist National Emerging Art Prize

Education

Graphic design and illustration 1990 – 1993