Sarah Becktel is an American artist based at the NJ shore and Bozeman, MT. She earned her BFA in painting from the Tyler School of Art and continued her studies of representational drawing and painting at multiple locations. Becktel has shown her work in solo and group exhibitions throughout the United States and her work is in private collections across the world.

Becktel has been awarded artist residencies at Brushcreek Ranch in Saratoga, Wyoming and PLAYA in Summer Lake, Oregon. In 2024, she won a grant through the New Jersey State Council on the Arts Individual Artist Fellowship program.

Sarah creates paintings and drawings that are inspired by animal ecology and natural history. She travels to view animals in their natural environments and extensively researches her subjects to create work rich in context and narrative. Sarah is interested in exploring how the animal kingdom has intersected with human civilization throughout history, and how we continue to navigate that intersection today.

When Becktel is not working in her studio or traveling, she is educating artists and students about their mediums and materials. As an Artist Educator for Dixon Ticonderoga (which includes art materials brands such as Strathmore, Canson, Arches, Princeton brushes, and Maimeri) Becktel lectures at art schools and ateliers about the characteristics of art materials and how to choose the right products for each artist’s individual needs. She served as Product Research Director for the Colored Pencil Society of America from 2009 to 2015, which led to a rich understanding of lightfast testing and art materials manufacturing.