Artist Bio
Susan’s love of art started at an early age. She attributes her early success to the guidance and encouragement she received from her teachers as well as an outstanding art curriculum.
In college Susan majored in Art Education with a studio concentration in Illustration. Study abroad helped further feed her passion for the arts.
Susan’s professional career took a few turns but was not ever far from her passion for the arts. Her creative journey took her into various positions including framing coordinator, marketing and independent art sales.
Susan moved to Quebec, Canada in the mid 80’s. While concentrating on learning a new language and raising her two daughters, Ms. Speed started exhibiting and selling her paintings at various galleries and retail locations throughout the province. After studying with a few accomplished “aquarelle” artists, she fell in love with watercolors.
In 1997 she moved to Greenville, SC and continued to work with watercolor and acrylics. She exhibited her work at several galleries and museum exhibitions. While studying under a husband-and-wife artistic team she started to further explore oil and acrylic painting.
Her dream to move to the coast came to fruition in 2017. She exhibited her work in several locations in and around Charleston. After spending years at the coast, it was time to move back to the Upstate of South Carolina.
Susan has since retired and dedicates her time to painting, learning and exploring.
Her work is currently on display at Simpsonville Fine Arts Gallery and her home studio.
Artist Statement
"My art is an exploration of light, color and movement to capture those 'in-between’ moments of the ever-changing landscape. Living in both the Lowcountry and Upstate of South Carolina has served as an endless supply of inspiration for my paintings. I revel in the beauty of the coastal marshes, beaches and historical street scenes, as well as the local wildlife and the lush forests of the Upstate. My preferred mediums are oil, acrylic, and soft pastels. I enjoy painting with spontaneous, textured, colorful pigmented layers on canvas. I work to capture the vibrant, high-energy colors of southern light while maintaining a sense of softness and stillness. Through my paintings, I invite viewers to pause, breathe, and experience the fleeting serenity of the moment."
