Sally Lahmon
Painting
After retiring in 2025 from a 32-year career at Sinclair Community College teaching writing and literature, I began a new chapter as a watercolor artist. Although painting was a departure from my professional life, it quickly felt familiar. Years spent thinking about language, composition, and storytelling naturally carried over into visual art.
Working primarily in watercolor, I continue to study and develop my practice, finding inspiration in Ohio's landscapes, gardens, and the places I encounter while traveling. When I'm not painting, I enjoy writing poetry, spending time with my family, and volunteering as a grant writer for a nonprofit cat rescue.
I live in the Dayton, Ohio area, where I continue to explore watercolor with the curiosity of both a lifelong teacher and an enthusiastic beginner. Â
Watercolor asks me to pay attention. It rewards observation, patience, and a willingness to let the unexpected become part of the finished work.
My paintings are inspired by the beauty of nature and places shaped by changing light, weather, and memory. Some begin with photographs I have taken, while others evolve from sketches, recollection, or imagination. Rather than documenting a scene exactly as it appears, I am interested in capturing what first drew me to it: a particular quality of light, a sense of quiet, or the feeling of wanting to linger.
After many years working with words, I have found that painting asks many of the same questions: what to emphasize, what to soften, and what to leave unsaid. My hope is that each painting invites viewers to slow down, look closely, and discover beauty in places they might otherwise overlook.
Birches by the Stream
5x7"
watercolor