Sally McCarthy earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting and Art History at the Massachusetts College of Art, and a Masters in Painting at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. While doing graduate work she taught courses at UMASS in oil painting, watercolor, advanced drawing, design and color theory. During her career she has exhibited widely in the Boston area and in New York's tri-city area.

Over the last two decades she was Owner of Mosaic Design, Inc and worked as an Art Director, Designer and Illustrator for ADAMS Design & Marketing Solutions, Coffin & Norton Associates, Portfolio Design, Inc. to name a few. Sally paints in her studio in Whitman, MA and is represented by the Dickinson Gallery in Weymouth, MA. She is also an Artist Member of the South Shore Art Center. She continues to work as a Designer and teaches classes and workshops. She shares her life and love with her husband Eric McCarthy, daughter Arica and son Cole.

I paint the presence of a place, recreating what exists between myself and my surroundings. My search over my career has been in discovering my own level of representation and abstraction. My paintings are realistic but not naturalistic. Color is an important factor in making the work come together. Where I see a value change I often show that difference with a color change, These color changes are not found in nature but are successful in maintaining correct depth and contrast without allowing the images to become disjointed. My paintings strive to possess a soul. Like the spirit in all of us there is a spirit we call the presence of a place.

My paintings are accessible but are not meant to be easily read. I prefer to let people formulate their own interpretations than to have the imagery be obvious. I hope to stir basic emotions of peace, excitement, and hope and also make works that are quiet illusions for contemplation.