Octopus Child’s Chair

Sandra Garofalo is a painter and illustrator whose talents shine through a variety of mediums, with a primary focus on acrylics, gouache, photography and glass—both hot and cold. She began her artistic journey illustrating for Spotlight, Motorboat, and International Yacht magazines. During this time, her love for depicting fish and shorebirds truly began to blossom. Later, she pursued a teaching career in advertising, art, and digital design. After retiring, she moved to her current home in Bristol, Connecticut.

Spending quality time in Southwest Florida, Sandra’s inspiration flourished into a vivid explosion of color and creativity. Surrounded by exotic wildlife in their lush habitats, she found herself constantly flooded with imagery that sparked emotional, expressive artwork. “The vibrant variation of color on the fish and other wildlife — as well as their surroundings is more than exciting to capture in paint,” she says.

Sandra earned her BFA from the University of Hartford Art School and went on to receive a National Bennie Award for logo design, the Chase Paper Merit Award for Printing Techniques, and has exhibited her work in numerous juried shows. She also built a successful freelance graphic design career, working with clients such as Revlon, Bayer Pharmaceuticals, Endurance Reinsurance, IBM, and The Hampton Designer Showhouse, to name a few.

Now fully retired, Sandra devotes her time to creating commissioned pieces, animal portraits, and using photography as a tool to capture the natural world that continues to inspire her artwork. Garofalo’s work is currently exhibited at Spectrum Gallery in Centerbrook, Connecticut.