About

Susan
"I developed a love of portrait painting when I was a teenager, however my journey as an artist has taken me to many rich and varied areas, including sculpture, illustration, community art, printmaking and mixed media." 

Susan’s professional journey began with a BA (Hons) degree in Design/Illustration at Swindon School of Art in the 1990s, followed by two years as Artist in Residence at Hreod Parkway Secondary School in Swindon.  Working with some of the pupils in the 'Exclusion Unit' Susan began to see how Art could be used as therapy, and enrolled at the University of Hertfordshire for an MA in Art Therapy.  After qualifying Susan worked for 12 years as an art therapist at the Prospect Hospice in Swindon and in 2008 returned to university, this time Loughborough, for a PhD developing an intervention called Portrait Therapy.  This is used as a way to help people who experience life threatening or chronic illnesses or other trauma as a disruption to their sense of self-identity.  Susan has written a book about Portrait Therapy published by Jessica Kingsley (2018), and an exhibition of these portraits called “Paint me this way!” was held at Swindon Museum and Art Gallery on 12 July – 10 September 2017.  This work received a grant from the Arts Council England.  Susan has also had her artwork selected and hung in the Royal West of England Academy of Art open exhibitions, the Pintar Rapido Competition, the Buxton Spa Prize and, the Norfolk plein air painting competition - A Brush with the Broads.  

Susan continues with her painting, writing and research projects, as well as painting commissions, developing collections of work for exhibitions, and working in private practice as an art therapist.  

Links to my publications are available under the "Publications" menu.







Please contact me for prices of artwork shown and commissions.

 


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