Brandon Nelson

Susan Bennerstrom

In this edition of “The Way I Live” we read about artist and canoe racer Susan Bennerstrom.

Q: Susan, you recently returned from Ireland – your 9th trip there! What are you experiencing there that keeps you going back, especially as it relates to your art?
A: I started going to Ireland in 1991, not because I’d been dying to go there, but because it seemed like an “easy” place for a woman to travel in alone. The moment I got off the plane I was hooked. Initially it was the landscape that attracted me, but as I got less shy and began to develop real friendships, it began to feel like home. No one is ever a stranger for long in Ireland, and there’s a sense of fun that’s magnetic — walk into any shop or pub and likely as not you will be drawn into some story or joke that keeps you laughing every time you think of it. Ireland’s tiny size makes it possible to get to know all kinds of people, and one thing can lead seamlessly to another. On my very first visit I began a friendship with the Robinsons, three elderly bachelor brothers who had lived and made beautiful furniture together all their lives. Through them I got to know a couple who ran an art center, and that led to invitations to return and teach workshops, give lecture/demonstrations in schools, and in 1997 I was asked to have an exhibition at the art center, which then traveled to the county courthouse gallery. Six years ago, driving through County Mayo on the west coast, I chanced upon the Ballinglen Arts Foundation and applied for a fellowship as soon as I got home. As a consequence, I had the great privilege of spending 2 1/2 months there in the fall of 2004, painting in my own studio at the Foundation and living in a cottage with a white bull and his lovely mate as neighbors, and a view of the sea. It was heaven. This year, my partner David Scherrer was awarded a fellowship for photography, and we spent nearly two months back at Ballinglen, getting better acquainted with the dramatic landscape, deepening friendships with people in the village, and making art.

Q: As a successful artist, you could live anywhere in the world and still do your work. Where else have your travels taken you? And what is about Whatcom County that keeps you calling it “home”?
A: I am an addicted traveler and whenever I’m a little money ahead I want to GO SOMEWHERE. Some of my favorite places (besides Ireland) are Turkey and Italy. East Asia is high on my list of places to go next. I love everything about traveling — even the hardships and traumas are part of the fabric of a trip. But no matter how long I’ve been away, my heart always lifts when I make that last bend on I-5 before coming into Bellingham. The older I get, the more I appreciate the things that make this town and this county unique, and the more aware I become of the depth of my roots here. For one thing, it’s just plain gorgeous — the town’s relation to the bay, the nearby mountains, the lakes and rivers. Plus, there’s a wonderful spirit of community involvement here, a sense of ownership of, and therefore responsibility for the environment, city planning, amenities like our Museum and the Mt. Baker Theatre, etc.

Q: For every successful artist out there – like yourself – there are roughly ten  million “struggling” ones. What advice would you give those who haven’t “made it” yet?
A: I never think of myself as “successful,” as I always feel like I am just learning, continually evolving in my craft, and the wolf is always lurking somewhere outside the door. So I don’t feel there’s much of a division between myself and artists who are just starting out, or just beginning to exhibit their work. What I tell my students is Just Go In Your Studio And Make Art — day after day after day, no excuses. It’s like anything that you want to get good at — there’s no substitute for putting in your time. You have to restrain yourself from the temptation to think “will this sell?” and instead make the kind of art that you feel passionate about. That’s where good, or at least soulful, art comes from.

Q: There are probably a lot of your art fans out there that don’t know you’re a passionate canoe racer. How did you get into paddling, and what role does it play in your life?
A: My cousins have had a Ski to Sea team for many years, and 5 or 6 years ago they asked my then-75 year old aunt and me to do the canoe leg. We said “Hey, we used to paddle canoes when we were kids at camp — we can do that!” So we practiced a couple of times and thought we had it down. That first year we felt very proud of ourselves that we not only survived, but finished without bringing disgrace to the family. David and I were getting to know each other then, and he gave Aunt Janie and me some lessons and we improved our time over the next couple of years. When Aunt Janie decided that at age 78 it was ok to retire from racing, David took her place on our team (”Aunt Janie’s Roadtrip”) as my canoe partner. But meanwhile he had gotten me involved in Whatcom Paddlers and the Wednesday night races on Lk. Whatcom, as well as Sound Rowers races, and another addiction was born! I’m still not crazy about paddling in cold pouring rain and wind, but there is absolutely nothing like the exhilaration of canoeing around Lk. Samish on a still summer evening, or exploring the currents and eddies of the Nooksack with our canoeing buddies on Sunday morning, or the rush of doing well in a race. Paddling is also a wonderful counterpoint to a long day at the easel.

Q: Let me pre-apologize if this question seems weird, but do artists have goals? How do you “push yourself” in your art that way you’d push as a racer to win, or to set a new personal best?
A: Goals, hmmm…… not a weird question! Some artists do, but me — not so much. Just to keep growing in my art, not to be timid about exploring new territory, to have my work be more and more a reflection of who I am. To continue to be able to make a living at it, yes, but more importantly, to keep making better paintings. Pushing myself has never been a problem — sometimes it’s stopping that’s hard. Except when David comes into the studio and says “Time to put your paddling clothes on!”

Q: Alright…fill in these blanks:
A: Your agent calls and tells you that you’ve just been commissioned by David and my best friend, Susan Christian to paint your impressions after spending a day with them. They’ve also asked you to pick the location – anywhere in the world – so you’ve chosen Istanbul. Oh, and your fee, which is $3 million (why not?) for this special piece, will be  split 3 ways between the Slum Doctor Programme, the Whatcom Humane Society, and the Whatcom Museum. (Can I keep a little for myself too?)

[View with PicLens]