Sue Holmes

Email: qsuezq@aol.com

Phone: (650) 224-4157

Website: http://sholmes.fineartstudioonline.com/

Artist Bio:

I was born in Oakland, California and grew up in the SF Bay Area (Sunnyvale, Los Altos Hills and Mountain View). Now I live in Scotts Valley, near Santa Cruz, California.
Prior to retiring in October, 2011, I was an accountant for 25 years for a wealthy family.
Weekends would find me at Santa Cruz Main Beach, playing sand volleyball.
Now my spare time is filled with tennis and painting. I take every opportunity to visit Hawaii and paint with the Plein Air Painters of Maui.

I am a member of the Santa Cruz Oil Painters (SCOP) and Monterey Bay Plein Air Painters Assoc.(MBPAPA), where I enjoy plein air painting and the camaraderie of other local artists. My paintings are a tribute to my love of Nature – and ideally, the paintings will resonate with other nature lovers. Plein air painting is definitely more difficult than painting in my studio, but the finished product always means more to me.

I have studied for many years with Barbara Bailey Porter and credit her with my willingness to “stay loose” and more recently with my exposure to painting larger canvases.

On weekends, the workshops I’ve taken from Maggie Hellmann have taught me to take the time to sketch a couple of scenes, choose the best one and select the colors I wish to use to tell the story of the location. Her technique reinforces my natural tendency to leave out the details and play with the light and colors.
I want to thank my teachers – this creative outlet has given me great joy and their encouragement gave me the hope and the incentive to continue.
I think everyone has artistic ability – the trick is to approach any new adventure without fear.