Suzanne Morris, Outer Banks, North Carolina

suzannemorrisstudios.com

Suzanne Morris uses broken color and expressive brushwork to convey her impressions of a subject. She does not try to tell the whole story… just enough to say what is important to her allowing viewers to “finish” the piece for themselves; thereby making each painting more personal to the viewer. She is fascinated by the play of light and shadow.  It is the effect light has on a subject that draws her to it. The patterns created by light falling across a subject can transform an ordinary scene into an extraordinary one. It is the magic she feels when she comes across one of these scenes that she tries to capture on her canvases. This is accomplished by adherence to light and shadow patterns, the use of vivid, descriptive color, and bold expressive brushwork.  If she does everything just right, she is able to share a piece of that magic with those who view her work.

Morris studied biology and pre- med in college at Longwood University and Mary Washington University. Her art education is through master workshops with some of the best plein air painters in the country, including Kevin Macpherson, Scott Christensen, Roger Dale Brown, Bill Davidson, Larry Moore and others.

     Sue is an avid plein air painter. She loves painting outdoors from life. There is SO much information in the field… a painter is forced to simplify and organize a design in order to tell the story. Light moves very quickly outdoors so one must “lay it down and leave it”. There is no time to overwork a piece.  All of a painter’s senses are used to infuse the work with a feeling of the place…. the smells, the sounds, the wind, even the people a painter encounters become part of a plein air painting. Mother nature creates color harmonies that would be impossible to make up in the studio. A plein air painting is truly a painter’s impression of the subject. She participates in as many plein air events as her schedule permits each year.  Inter action with other participating artists is not only a great learning opportunity; these events are a great source of energy and inspiration as well.

     Suzanne believes strongly in sharing information and ideas with other painters.  She holds a weekly workshop in her studio on the Outer Banks of North Carolina for painting and another for life drawing.  She teaches workshops and demonstrates her painting techniques for her galleries and other interested groups.  She hosts plein air and studio workshops with nationally acclaimed painters. She has served as both entry and awards juror for several events.

     Mrs. Morris has been a featured artist in several national art magazines in the last few years. She was one of five marine artists featured in the September 2013 issue of Southwest Art and the subject of 2 Artist Focus features in American Art Collector Magazine, as well as having work featured in the May issue of Plein Air magazine.

     Suzanne’s work is collected both corporately and privately throughout the United States. Most notable of her corporate collectors are Burt’s Bees, East Carolina Bank, Paragon Commercial Bank, First Citizens Bank, Verizon Corporate Headquarters, the commandant of Mid-Shipmen at the US Naval Academy, University of California, Irvine, Medical Center, and Duke University Hospital.