Meet the Artist Who Paints the Photo Backdrops Nearly Everyone Has Seen

Backdrops are a vital and underappreciated aspect of many iconic portrait photos. The short film, The Promise of Spring, provides an intimate look at one of the most prolific but almost entirely unknown backdrop artists, Sarah Oliphant.

Oliphant’s backdrops have been used by photographers, designers, architects, interior designers, and more for nearly 50 years and have graced the covers of world-renowned publications like Vanity Fair and Vogue. Famous photographers like Annie Leibovitz, Richard Avedon, Jerry Ghionis, Anne Geddes, and countless more have used Oliphant backdrops. So, too, have huge brands like Marc Jacobs, Hermes, Ralph Lauren, Balenciaga, Tommy Hilfiger, GAP, Victoria’s Secret, Tiffany & Co., and Burberry, to name just a handful. Nearly everyone has seen Oliphant’s hand-painted backdrops, but very few know the artist behind them.

“You’ve seen my work a billion times,” says Sarah Oliphant. “Because I’m not the ‘it,’ I’m the behind the ‘it.'”

“If you have ever opened a fashion magazine, you have seen Oliphant,” says photographer Felix. “If you’ve ever walked down the street and seen an advertisement, you have seen Oliphant.”

Sarah Oliphant

“I would argue that Oliphant Studios’ art has been seen by more people on the planet than any other artist. Ever,” Felix adds.

Oliphant’s backdrops are primarily created as backdrops for portrait photography and are an essential part of the final art. However, Sarah Oliphant does not consider her painting as art itself but as ” a piece of equipment.”

“These are just pieces of canvas, and I try to make them beautiful, and I love them,” she says. “Some of them look like shit, but whatever. But I love them. I look at them and I’m filled with happiness.”

It has been a family affair at Oliphant Studios, too, as Sarah’s daughter, Violet Oliphant-O’Neill, previously worked there.

“My mother is a workaholic,” Violet says. “My mother is such a force and such a presence, and I definitely feel in her shadow in a lot of ways because when it comes to work, I feel like I need to be just like her. Which is great; I would love to be — I want to be like my mom, but our work is different.”

Violet Oliphant O’Neill worked as head painting assistant for her mother from 2013 until 2021, when she ventured off on her own. She works as an interior design artist and creates custom hand-painted ceramic tiles.

Sarah Oliphant and Violet Oliphant-O’Neill

“Legacy is complicated, and parents who are successful, being their child is complicated,” Violet adds. Her grappling with being an artist in the shadow of another is a central theme of the film.

The Promise of Spring was directed by award-winning documentary filmmaker Anna Andersen, with Nilu Amin serving as director of photography. The film was produced by Katie Rose Vaughan and edited by Erin McGoff.

Image credits: ‘The Promise of Spring’ by Anna Andersen