Jeannie O'Connor was born in San Francisco, and got an MA in Art from the University of California, Berkeley. She taught painting, drawing and photography at California College of Arts and Crafts and Berkeley City College. Jeannie got the SECA award ( Society for the Encouragement of Contemporary Art) from the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and the Phelan Award in Photography. Jeannie has served as an artist in residence at the Escuela de Talavera in Spain, and at Sanskriti Kendra residency in India. Jeannie has received 3 Artist in Community grants from the California Art Council.In 2023-4 Jeannie's Aids self-portrait series was shown at the San Francisco Main Library. In 2024 SFMOMA added Jeannie's Aids Self-Portraits to their Photography collection.
