Nance Lee Sneddon

Nance Lee Sneddon is an artist and designer who was born in southwestern Pennsylvania. Inspired by the artist women in her life, she painted and batiked fabrics as a girl, sewing them into functional clothing and home furnishings. 



After studying with a major in textile design at Edinboro University, she moved to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina in 1978 and stayed for 18 years. While in Hilton Head, Nance developed a line of women`s fine art accessories which included handbags, fashion belts and hand-sewn and dyed clothing. These were sold in boutiques, including Henri Bendel and Art Museum gift stores.



In the mid 1980’s Nance’s work evolved onto large, loose canvases with the look of contemporary tapestry. Nance co-created Moonshell Gallery, a fine arts gallery in Hilton Head in 1990, which represented 25 internationally known artists. She owned and operated Moonshell Gallery until 1997.



Nance moved to Charleston, South Carolina in 1996, where she lived and painted full-time for 22 years. In Charleston, Nance participated in the Piccolo Spoleto Outdoor Art Festival for 19 consecutive seasons. Charleston and the lowcountry of South Carolina have been a huge influence in her work, as well as the meadows and mountains where she grew up.

“Instead of drawing literal interpretations of what I see, I’m drawn to shapes, colors and a mood:  like the lightening bugs in my yard, sparkling moon-lit sand and chimney shapes in downtown Charleston.”

Recently, Nance had the opportunity to move back to Hilton Head Island full-time. The home she resides in offers comfort after all of her family losses—especially the stunning loss of her sister, artist, Sue Sneddon (2022). Here she is surrounded by the art of her family. Nance’s sister Jo Sneddon lives in Santa Fe and Nance looks forward to spending more and more time there. 

Nance describes her work as “stylized imagery of nature, full of texture, pattern, and light.” … from canvases, to wood, metal, and paper, most of her work contains a narrative filled with archetypal symbols and dreams of travel. Her mixed-medium work combines naive flat design with more complex layers of printmaking, acrylic brushwork, collage, oil stick, hand-stitching and bead work. 

“I am inspired by color, design, natural beauty, creatures, and the hopefulness of spring. My new series “Wet Sand Patterns” is an interpretation of the designs left in the sand by the tides at my family’s special place where Fish Haul Creek flows into the Port Royal Sound.”



Nance’s work traveled for four years to United States Embassies in Australia and Jordan as part of the United States Art in Embassies Program. More recently  Nance’s Extra Tropical series spent two years at the U.S. Embassy in Panama.  Nance’s work may be seen in many large-scale corporate collection settings, hotels, health care facilities and in private homes across the country.

ServicesPaintingLinkwww.nanceleesneddon.com