Bio | Sally Wiener Grotta

Self-portrait: Sally Wiener Grotta, storyteller — “Storyteller”, a self-portrait by Sally Wiener Grotta

Author, journalist, photographer, essayist and lecturer all describe what Sally Wiener Grotta does. But to truly understand who she is, one must also apply the title Storyteller to her list of accomplishments and achievements. Whether it’s a picture or an article, a workshop or a book, Sally’s primary purpose, above and beyond communicating concepts, ideas and information, is to tell a good story that will entertain, amuse and enlighten.

“A global treasure” ~ Pat Schroeder, former U.S. Congresswoman

Journalist

As an award-winning journalist and photographer, Sally has traveled on assignment to all seven continents (including three trips to Antarctica) and many exotic islands (such as Papua New Guinea and Madagascar), covering a wide diversity of cultures and traditions. Her far-ranging experiences flavor her stories and presentations with a sense of wonder and otherliness, plus a healthy dose of common sense.

Author

Sally has authored numerous fiction and non-fiction books. These include the groundbreaking Digital Imaging for Visual Artists (McGraw-Hill, co-authored with Daniel Grotta), the novel Jo Joe (Pixel Hall Press) which was a Jewish Book Council Network book, and the novel The Winter Boy (Pixel Hall Press) which was a Locus Magazine Recommended Read.

Speaker

A popular speaker who has appeared in a wide variety of venues throughout North America, as well as on radio and TV, Sally has a reputation for stimulating open, meaningful discussions about creativity, storytelling, photography, the business of writing, and the nature of bias and prejudice.

“You can’t know what it means to welcome into our studios people who are so extraordinarily creative and who put their gifts to work in service of celebrating and revealing our common humanity.” ~ Erika Funke, ArtScene, WVIA FM

Photographer

Sally’s storytelling extends to her photography, creating images that capture human connections and inspire wonder. For her current fine art project – American Hands – she creates narrative portraits of artisans who are keeping the traditional trades alive, such as a glassblower, bookbinder, rug weavers, broom maker and others. Recognized by X-Rite as one of “The World’s Top Professional Photographers,” her work has appeared in scores of one-woman exhibits and has been supported by dozens of grants and corporate sponsors.