J. McNeil Sargent has been a Dynamic force in the San Diego art scene since her move here over twenty-seven years ago from Washington D.C. A world traveler with a wide-ranging experience in the arts, her focus has been largely in the graphics field. She is also an accomplished painter in oils. 

Upon tracing her roots back to John Singer Sargent and James McNeil Whistler, it prompted her to take on the “nom d’artiste” J. McNeil Sargent (aka Jean Braley). One of her first undertakings when she arrived here was to organize and serve as president of the local chapter of National Artists’ Equity. The chapter grew to a membership of over three hundred artists. 

In 1982, she was asked by artist Francoise Gilot to become Executive Director of the Printmakers’ Atelier. Under her guidance the Atelier gained international recognition in the graphics field. Currently, she is chairperson of the Sargent Art Group a partnership of professional and emerging artists.

McNeil is represented in over four hundred public and private collections, and is listed in Who’s Who in American Art. Her original graphics are in the Bibliotheque Nationale de France; the American Embassy program in Washington D.C.; the Smithsonian Institute Washington D.C.; the Las Vegas Museum, Las Vegas, AZ and others.