We recently had the chance to connect with Susan Gibbons and have shared our conversation below.
Good morning Susan, we’re so happy to have you here with us and we’d love to explore your story and how you think about life and legacy and so much more. So let’s start with a question we often ask: What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
My family. I have four daughters, some with significant others, two grandchildren, my husband, and me, plus our dog and two cats. We spend as much time as possible with the grandkids and kids. It’s hard getting everyone together as one daughter lives out of state, but we try as often as possible. We love fishing with them, celebrating birthdays and other achievements, watching movies, karaoke, or just hanging out together. Family is one of the most important things in life and we make it a priority to honor that.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am a visual artist/educator and have worked at my studio practice for almost forty-eight years. My work is represented by Space Gallery, here in Denver, and I also teach out of my studio. I taught K-College for over thirty years and enjoyed that immensely. My work has varied over the years as I tend to work in series, with the materials and concepts dictating which media I will use. I have worked in acrylic, encaustic, oil, watercolor, pastel, graphite, charcoal, and conte crayon, to name a few, and make my own acrylic paints out of dirt and rocks from Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming. It’s challenging but fun. It connects me with the earth and I feel like I am connecting with my artistic ancestors when making the paint.
I have been very fortunate to have a studio practice for so long. I hold a MFA from Azusa Pacific University which was an accomplishment I am grateful to have achieved.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
I have two significant relationships that have shaped me. One is my husband, Randy and the other is my faith in G-d. Both have shown me what unconditional love looks like, which has made me a better person. They were able to allow me to see myself through their eyes, seeing past my faults and embracing the good they saw in me. Randy has been my rock and backbone of support in my pursuit as an artist. He’s encouraged me when I was down, and celebrated me with my successes. I wouldn’t be who I am today without them.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
I would say to my younger self, don’t be so scared to go for your art. You have the talent and abiltiy, the discipline and tenacity to hang in there when the going gets tough. Don’t listen to the naysayers, follow your passion, it will guide you and nourish you. Learn as much as you can about your craft, your business, yourself. Don’t compare yourself to others, stay true to your vision and do the work.
Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
I am working on a series of work that is difficult to create. It is based on the laments, both personal and private, of my life and the world around me. I started it in 2018 and I am only half-way through creating the work. It is dark and emotional work, hard to create at times. I need to take breaks from it for my own well-being but it is something I am driven to do. I feel it is important work because of the significance of the subject matter. So many struggle with things in their lives and the world around us. This is one way to express that, reveal that, and allow people to come into the journey with me to release the pent up emotions that can build in life. My goal is to have it finished within the year but I am not going to rush it either. It will come about as it needs to. It is too important to me to make it a production. It is an expression, an offering, a prayer, if you will, to the world.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
This is an interesting question. To some degree, I am doing what I was initially told to do in high school but as an adult, I am doing exactly what I was born to do. Some back story to this, I was a dancer for thirteen years, planning on going into it professionally. I had a dance company that wanted me to teach and perform for them. I was planning on majoring in dance in college. My parents thought that life would be too hard and talked me out of it.
As a senior in high school, I took my first design and drawing classes, my ability was seen by my teachers and parents, to the point that they immediately enrolled me in a college drawing class. They both encouraged me to pursue art as a career. I have never looked back from that point.
I believe I was fulfilling a destiny of sorts. When I was 8 years old, my uncle gave me a little, stuffed orange dachsund with a white beret, named, Pierre. When he gave it to me, he said, “look, it’s an artist”! I thought in my head at the time, “that’s what I am, an artist”. So I am on my true path.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.susanmgibbons.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/smgibbonsfineartist/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/susan-m-gibbons-mfa-647a641b/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/susanmgibbonsfineartist
Image Credits
Photos by Jason Braddock and Susan M Gibbons
