Meet Suzanne Kelley Clark

Today we’d like to introduce you to Suzanne Kelley Clark.

Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
My dream as a child was to be an artist. I remember at age 4 being very happy making marks and holding the pencil my mother handed to me to write my name for the first time. It was very exciting to me. Many children who love art lose their interest as they move into their teen years. For me, my love of making art intensified and I wanted to learn as much as I could about it.

I grew up in a small town in upstate NY within walking distance of beautiful woods and the longest of the Finger Lakes. Nature was always nearby and I loved its quietly complex energy. Teachers were very encouraging and promoted the idea of college and maybe art school. My parents wanted what they considered the best for me, hoping that I would choose a profession which would insure a more financially secure future. I understood that, but I was stubbornly persistent in wanting what was always pretty obvious to me.

With the help of friends and a full-time job as a waitress, I attended the School of Visual Arts in New York City. This move was quite a shock for a small-town kid. From 7 thousand to 8 million neighbors overnight. Though very hard for me, it was an amazing learning experience and the training at SVA was superb. I left with a BFA in fine art, Drawing and Painting.

After graduating, I moved to Dallas Texas (1975) This was another shock! Dallas was a very bright, clean quiet small city compared to New York. The sky was actually BLUE! Though adjusting to the heat was tough, I loved the light in Dallas. After many attempts to find art jobs, (commercial), I landed at an Illustrators studio as a receptionist and through this job met many great people in the Graphic Art world in Dallas. I learned how to make a living as a paste up and mechanicals artist, which was paying the rent, but I wasn’t very happy. It was time for a change and so I started looking at working in a gallery. This would bring me closer to what I really loved. Even though I did not make any money, the gallery job was exciting and was leading me to what I always wanted. While working there, I met an artist who encouraged me to apply to SMU grad school. It never occurred to me to do that. I did it and not only was I accepted, I was awarded a full scholarship with an assistantship. I could hardly believe it. A door opened wide for me and I was thrilled to step forward.

Many grad students are interested in teaching…I was not. I wanted to become a better painter. At the time, I did not realize that one of the things I loved about my gallery job was that I was instructing customers about art and techniques. Also, after having to present papers in art history class to a group of my classmates, the anxiety just about made me pass out! So, a few years later, an artist/teacher friend asked me to sub for her. Even though I just about had heart failure seeing all of those faces staring at me waiting for great information about painting…Now, I had discovered something I loved almost as much as painting and my husband…. It has been 32 years of teaching drawing and painting at various schools as an adjunct. 17 years at the DCCCD as an adjunct and always since I began, teaching adult education at SMU. My students have been so inspiring, brilliant and hard working. I love them all. I feel that it is a privilege to teach. There is no greater joy in my life than having the good fortune to do what I feel I was sent here to do.

This type of work allowed me to work in a more focused way on my painting. Since 1989, I have sold my work through some fine dealers in Dallas, Houston and Syracuse N.Y. Presently I am thrilled to be represented by Craighead Green Gallery on Dragon Street in the design district of Dallas. My journey toward my goal has taught me so much, not only about my subjects and related subjects as well, but more importantly, how to face my fears. Teaching has been such a gift. It has been and continues to be a rewarding experience which also enriches my life and my painting.

Please tell us about your art.
I am a representational landscape and nature subject painter. I use oil on canvas and panels, watercolor, pastel and mixed media on paper. Drawing is important to me.

What do you do?
I began making on site paintings from nature. These were commonly 24 x 30 oil paintings. I have found a few places I have returned to for years which I feel a deep connection to. My painting practice has expanded to a return to studio work using memory, reference drawings and my photographs, bringing me back full circle to techniques I learned as a young artist, (photo realism). My work on site is more of an immediate or raw approach, using direct painting methods, while the photo real paintings are larger studio paintings which can take a long time to paint and are painted in a slower more careful way, using more traditional painting techniques. Contact with my subject is extremely important to my process however since it provides the inspiration, deeper connection and the actual light, color and energy of the place. I attempt to bring that information back to the studio paintings. I guess my photoreal paintings are not pure photo real images, as I do make changes to the look and feel of the photos at times.

What do you make, create?
Oil paintings on canvas and panel, size range 16 x 20″ to very large, pastels usually are no larger than 24 x 36″, watercolors can be smaller 9 x 12″, mixed media drawings on paper, 30 x 40″, drawings with various wet and dry media on all sizes of paper.

This is a difficult question to answer. much of the “why for me is a very deep, intense multi-sensory feeling, which does not translate verbally. It is a feeling I have known since my early days in the woods of upstate NY. Nature is a profound inspiration to me.

What is the message or inspiration?
The message has to do with what we can learn from nature, how we should attempt to preserve and protect our natural areas and the wildlife living in those places. It is very important to us in so many ways.

What do you hope people take away from it?
I hope that my paintings speak to people on multiple levels. First, as inviting beautiful, peaceful places, but also as an invitation to spend time in natural places. It has a very grounding and calming effect. Beyond that, I hope that the paintings convey the duality and balance we see when observing nature. I believe it is important. Often, I attempt to include the tensions present in our world as part of that balance.

What should we know about your artwork?
My work is done often as a quick response, but also as a slow deliberate march. I love the idea of transforming a material, (like oil paint) into an illusion of something quite different, and then bringing it back to the surface as marks on a surface. It is an experience for me and I want my viewers to enter into it with me, to feel it as well as see it. I have always thought that a truly successful work of art is one that transforms or transports the viewer. That is my goal.

How to connect with other artists?
For me the best way to connect is to attend every gallery opening you possibly can. Talk to the artists showing and their friends. Talk to the gallerists. If you do this enough, people start to know you and you are then absorbed into the Dallas art crowd. I have not been very active in social media, but I suspect one could become a member of local, national and international groups of artists and art lovers this way.
Join the museums and attend their events and lectures, too.

Thank you!
Let me know if you have questions

How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
I am very excited to be represented by Craighead Green Gallery on Dragon Street in the design district of Dallas. (1011 Dragon St. Dallas, 75207)
My website: suzannekelleyclark.com
Facebook is Suzanne Clark

Support me by visiting the gallery, perhaps buying a piece of my art and / or, join my painting classes. the schedule is posted on my website under Teaching Schedule. Please also, I know this is not easy in today’s world, but please tread lightly on the earth. Do your part to help our planet.

Contact Info:

• Address: POB 140632, Dallas, Texas 75214
• Website: suzannekelleyclark.com
• Phone: 214-793-2185
• Email: skcart@airmail.net
• Facebook: Suzanne Clark

Image Credit:
Harrison Evans Photography (paintings)
Michael Clark (of me and my painting, and me with student)

Getting in touch: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.