Sharon McDonell grew up on her ancestral farm in Glengarry County, Ontario. Early on, she developed a profound appreciation for her rural surrounding and began painting landscapes by age 10. She focused on picturesque rail fences, rivers & rocks in all their seasons, hay fields and towering old sugar maples – all that defines the rural landscape of Eastern Canada.

She was accepted into the Bachelor of Fine Arts program at Queen’s University and completed her first year of studio work before switching programs to Film Studies. She earned her B.A. in 1991, moved to Montreal after graduation and began working as a freelance illustrator for an animation company.

In 1995, Sharon attended the School of Interior Design at Dawson College, Montreal. Despite making the Dean’s List in her first semester, she jumped at an opportunity to work on a feature film and headed for Toronto. There, she worked through the ranks and became a Costume Designer in 1998. Highlights of her film career include costume designing the Canadian ‘mockumentary’ feature film "The Life and Hard Times of Guy Terrifico" in 2003, a 3 week stint as ‘Personal Dresser’ to the legendary Oscar-winner Peter O’Toole and a trip to the Cannes Film Festival in 1999 in support of the first feature film she designed.

Sharon still frequently works in film/television production… In addition to her costume work, she occasionally has her artwork featured as well. Her paintings have been seen on the television series "Billable Hours", "Train 48" and the TV movie "Too Young to Marry".

Travel & exploration has become the catalyst for Sharon’s artwork. With every trip/every move she explores new vistas, new vegetation, new atmosphere… A road trip along the North Shore of Quebec yielded 3 paintings from the region surrounding "Les Escoumins". A winter trek along the Pacific Coast Highway inspired a favourite painting of moss-laden trees in the mist…

Sharon’s paintings reveal her fascination with extremes of climate & topography as well as her love of darker, more sensual landscapes. Murky waters, moss, lush vegetation and the sense of the unseen dominate. Her eye is drawn to the harshness of the frozen coast of PEI, the black swamps of North Carolina, the ivy covered stone villages of the southern England, the wind-swept deserts and ruins of ancient Morocco…

Sharon makes her home in Glengarry County once again and though she continues to work in the film industry, painting is becoming her primary focus.

You can view Sharon's film resumé by clicking here.