Get to Know: Sue Schlabach
Hello, friends! We're so excited for Wild Pages with Sue Schlabach this September 13-16! Are you ready to gather images, experiment boldly, and craft a Wild Pages book that holds your marks, your stories, and your sense of place?
Wild Pages | September 13-16
Meet your sensational artist guide, Sue:
What is your favorite art supply? Right now I am deeply enamored of Beam Paint Stones Dreamer’s Gold. Beam Watercolor Paint Stones are handmade by an indigenous family in Ontario and their paints are artisanally crafted from natural materials and poured and cured in waxed cloth or paper: no plastic. I have been slowly collecting paint stones to have a diverse palette and they are my go-to art supply for traveling. Their metallic paints are particularly spectacular. The gold shimmers and shines as much as a gold leafing and elevates a simple watercolor image into a glowing jewel.
What do you love about teaching? Teaching is an ultimate privilege because in my years of work as an art and creative director I witnessed artists holding on to their secrets and knowledge and I saw that it was hurting their creative process. Teaching is richly reciprocal. You give away what you’ve learned from years of practice and experimenting and then you see your own techniques grow and flourish in the hands of hundreds of other artists. What you learn back from your students grows and expands a thousand fold. And seeing the joy on a person’s face as they try a new way to do something is deeply gratifying to me.
What is the strangest thing that has ever inspired your art? In Mexico I was in a courtyard in Oaxaca city where vining tree trunks came down from the roof and looked like abstracted scribbled line drawings. They were amazing. Sculptural scribbles hanging in the air! And above the entire roof was comprised of their flowering branches. Above my head it was pink and green and filled with bird chatter. Pure heaven. This was only about three weeks ago. I am scribbling and painting and working out (as I am writing this) how this inspiration is going to ultimately appear publicly in my work. It’s all in the sketchbooks right now and I’m really excited about it.
What's the weirdest thing you've made? An enormous paper mâche teacup that I wore on my head.
What's your favorite snack or drink to fuel your creativity? Yorkshire Gold tea, steeped long and dark with whole milk.
What job would you be terrible at? Zookeeper. I’d want all the animals to be free. Except maybe the snakes….
Enjoy creative conversation and connection in our beautiful barn studio and at our communal table on the veranda. It is our hope and mission that at the Smiley Manse, not only will you make GREAT art, you'll also make GREAT friends!
Sign up to join Sue for Wild Pages or one of our other fabulous retreat leaders this season. We can't wait to host you 💛