Featured Student Artist | August 2024

Suzy Farren

Suzy took her first class with Laurie Doctor in 2010 or 2011. She has taken many classes since then, including two in Italy.

Balance – Mixed Media on Paper, 11 x 15, 2022, ©Suzy Farren

I met Laurie on a cold March day in St. Louis in 2010 or 11. I arrived at class tired after a stressful work week, excited but with low expectations. I sat in the back.

I had been a writer for my entire career, but I was beginning to explore art as a form of self-expression. A friend had insisted I sign up for Laurie’s class, so I did. Since that day, I’ve been in countless Laurie classes, including one in Taos and two in Italy. Why?

Something life-changing happened that March weekend. I emerged from Laurie’s class with a new-found confidence in myself. When I thought of myself, the word artist never came to mind. Laurie’s use of the word “maker” took the pressure off. What I was called didn’t matter; it was the creating that was important. Also, the idea of using my illegible handwriting in my work had been inconceivable. Laurie helped me discover that my scribble was an expression of my self: of who I am. It didn’t need to be perfect to be seen by others. It was okay to be comfortable with it as it was.

Onward and Upward – Mixed Media, 18 x 18, 2024, ©Suzy Farren

There was more. Somehow during the course of that weekend, I managed to cover several large sheets of paper with words, colors, shapes and marks. And magically the papers were folded into several small, intimate – and amazingly – lovely books. I left the workshop not merely inspired, but thrilled at the possibilities.

Some of the many books I’ve made over the years, ©Suzy Farren

Not that the journey was easy. In Italy, Laurie asked us (as an exercise) to choose one item to draw repeatedly. Thinking I was brilliant because it would be so easy, I chose Italian roof tiles. Hint: If you are ever asked to draw one thing for two weeks, DON’T PICK ITALIAN ROOF TILES!

Wretched Tile Drawing, ©Suzy Farren

Of course we also made books, and we bound them with a method that was new to me. I hated it because it involved weaving and, of course, I had picked black thread and could barely see it. Laurie said she found the process soothing and ended up finishing my binding for me (thank heaven!). Today, it’s my favorite way to bind a book.

Inside front cover and first page detail from one of the Italy books, ©Suzy Farren

Of course one of the delights of Laurie’s teachings is the poetry. In Taos, she recited a poem called The Word by Tony Hoagland.

“Down near the bottom of the crossed out list of things you have to do today, between ‘green thread’ and ‘broccoli’ you find that you have penciled ‘sunlight’.

“Resting on the page, the word is as beautiful, it touches you as if you had a friend . . . “

The poem goes on: “. . . today you get a telegram, from the heart in exile proclaiming that the kingdom still exists . . . “

I was captivated, and later that summer created a stitched cloth book called Telegram from the Heart in Exile.

My practice has expanded to include fiber art, print making, mixed media and abstract painting. I’ve had work in many shows since that day in March. But making books – wonky and imperfect as they are – is always a labor of love for me.