Sue Werner teaching an art class
Emilie Ortega, President, QCFAPC
When you first meet Sue Werner, you are struck by her unassuming style of speaking and teaching. A multimedia artist proficient in acrylics, colored pencil, mixed media, and collage art, Sue is a snowbird from Minnesota who teaches from September to April in the Creative Arts & Technology Center building. Her “magic” is in her precise instruction and clear joy of art, which she brings to every class she teaches. She is very knowledgeable in the techniques of the masters of the past. Recently, she completed a class in Learn to Paint Like Matisse. You can see her work and her students’ work in the showcase outside the art studio.
Susan was born and raised in Detroit. Her family owned a bar in the same district where the 1967 Detroit riots took place. Unfortunately, the bar and neighborhood were destroyed in the 1967 riots. After the riots, her mother supported the family as a beautician. Art was always with her, and she spent much of her time inside, drawing and painting.
Fun Fact #1: Sue knew all the top hit songs from 1958 to 1967 because the jukebox was right under where she lived. She can still sing along with those tunes today.
Susan’s work history was a career in occupational therapy for 43 years. Her degree is from Eastern Michigan University. Her last work assignment as a traveling therapist was in Sells, Ariz., for the Tohono O’odham School District. She fell in love with Arizona, bought a home with her husband in Green Valley, and retired.
Fun Fact #2: Sue is a master at making lefse, a Norwegian flatbread. She gave me some, as I grew up eating it, made by my grandma. It was delish.
Sue has taken art classes but is mostly self-taught. She started out with drawing and progressed to colored pencil. She has taught this here and hopefully will do other classes in the fall. She worked in watercolor for years during the raising of her two sons but never “fell in love” with it. She is proficient in pastels and mixed media as well. However, when she tried acrylics, she found her medium and has taught it here for a number of years.
Sue’s philosophy: “Art is essential for us as human beings. It helps us get in touch with our feelings and the people and world around us. Art is a sharing thing and helps us play.”
Fun Fact #3: During the Summer of 2023, Sue had an art show in Minnesota where she sold almost all of her 22 pieces of art. She has a website, www.susanjwernerart.com, if you want to see her work.
So, if you are interested in learning more about the Quail Creek Fine Arts Painting Club (QCFAPC), then take some classes and see just what makes our members keep coming back for more. It’s teachers like Sue who make all the difference.