Lisa Sneed
Lisa Sneed started studying art privately as a young girl when her mother recognized her talent. She has studied with Don Seber and Vicars McKinney, portrait artists. She holds a degree in English education from Liberty University, Lynchburg, Virginia, and spent several years working in “corporate America.” She chose to leave the corporate world and spend more time with her family and artwork.
“I decided to stay home with my children more and do commission painting part time. My mural work was first, then canvas became as popular. I’ve enjoyed my painting career for 24 years now. I believe that my painting talent is God given, and I’m so blessed to be able to use it,” she says.
She uses oil, acrylic, pastels, pencil and chalk to express herself. She was featured recently in the Kingsport Times News for a mural that she painted in an alley. She has murals in doctors’ offices, churches, schools and the New Life Birthing Center in the Bristol hospital. She also has a mural in Logan’s Steakhouse and many other private businesses in the region.
“After years of murals and painting decoratively, I did a few formal oils of pets for friends and family. I guess people liked them, and by word of mouth they just took off,” Sneed says.
She enjoys the reaction her clients have when see their furry family member memorialized.
“Pets add so much joy to the lives of owners and live such a short time. A painting of that special pet helps the fond memories last forever. I had a customer who had 12 or 13 cats. They wanted them all on one painting, so we took a picture of a camel back sofa and had all the cats doing different things on and around the sofa. The painting turned out really well. I’ve painted everything from pigs to swans. Horses are very popular too. I painted some little baby pigs from behind, running away from the camera, so their little butts were the main subject. It was so cute. It’s memorable when a customer picks up a painting in tears. People love their pets.
“For 24 years I have been busy and have gotten to know some of the nicest people in the Tri-Cities and surrounding area. I hope to always paint. I teach an oil and acrylic class for Slater Senior Center in Bristol, Tennessee, twice per week, and have a spot on BTNTV called the ‘Art Corner,’ where I narrate, and paint different subjects every six weeks or so. It is also featured on YouTube,” she says.
It generally takes Sneed a couple of days to create a portrait with one pet in it and a simple background. To commission a portrait from her, call 423-956-1011 or 276-466-2469 or visit her at her studio in Willow Creek Antiques on State Street in Bristol, Virginia.
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