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Susan, how long have you been painting and when did you first begin
doing art?
I have been creating, mostly drawing and painting ever since I can
recall, which was around the age of 4. I remember being really into
drawing at school, spending hours on creative projects and drawing on
recycled computer paper at home, all these detailed and colourful
drawings of anything and everything. After doing well at art in high
school I went to art college and completed a diploma in Fine Arts,
majoring in studio painting and life drawing which was a great
experience for me.
What inspires you the most?
When I paint I feel it is kind of a spiritual experience, I receive a
lot of my inspiration directly from nature, the sea, the sky, the moon,
trees, plants and animals and the natural lighting of different times of
day and night also influence my art a lot.
I am an observer by nature so I love to sit and look at the details in a
tree or at the ripples in water or the effects made by waves at the
beach. I find that when I am still and at peace and tuning into those
things I receive lots of images and ideas for my paintings and then I
can't wait to get the ideas down on canvas. I am also inspired by
dreams, symbolism, archetypes and the female form.
Why did you choose fantasy art to specialize in?
I wouldn't say that it was a conscious choice it was something that
evolved naturally and gradually. I was always drawing and painting very
stream of consciousness type imagery and I noticed that as I embarked on
a more spiritual path in my own life these images started coming to me
and I found that I was sketching and painting more and more images like
the ones you see in my work now.
What mediums do you use?
All of my paintings are painted by hand with acrylic paint on
canvas. Either stretched canvas or canvas panel.
Do you do other types of art besides painting; if so what?
I have experience with many different art making disciplines. At art
college I also studied black and white photography, etching, life
drawing and sculpture. However my main interest has always been drawing
and painting and that remains my main artistic focus.
What type of products do you have to offer?
I sell prints of various sizes of a selection of my work, I also
sell other gift items made from various images of my work such as
greeting cards, calendars and a variety of other products which can be
found at my online stores via my website.
Where do
you see yourself going with your art; what does your future hold?
I see myself continuing to evolve my painting technique and
continuing to bring to life the many ideas and inspirations that I have.
I have some projects that I am working on this year including a feature
in a UK print magazine which is very exciting. One of my future goals,
is to see my work published in a fairy art or fantasy art book.
Do have any words of wisdom for all those budding artists out there?
All I can
say is if art is truly your passion, then don't give up, work on
perfecting your technique and be persistent, as hard work and patience
does pay off.
To view more of Susan's
whimsical
artwork, please visit her website: http://www.susanrodioart.bravehost.com/.
All works
are copyright. Permission to use these images in any way must be
obtained from the artist.
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