Meet Sue Averell

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sue Averell a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Sue with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?

I developed my work ethic from observing my parents. They both were dedicated to their profession. My father was a teacher and cared deeply about educating young people. My mother was in social work and worked hard to protect neglected children and later in her career worked as a director in a Southern California senior center.

Both my parents encouraged me to set goals and to accomplish them.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

Art making has always been a big part of my life. To make a living with art is not an easy path, and I consider myself very fortunate to have been successful at the business of art for almost 3 decades.

Owning an art gallery was not in my original business plan, but I am glad I took the leap and opened a gallery in 2017. In addition to my work, Gallery Sausalito represents more than 20 artists. The gallery artists work in a variety of mediums including, acrylic, oil, ceramics, bronze, and assemblage.

Gallery Sausalito is also my working studio where I share my creative process with visitors. Allowing people to see work in process helps them to connect to the art in a more personal way. Their reactions and interactions while observing helps to fuel my energy to create.

We host an annual group exhibit called The Biggest Small Works Show. Our inaugural show took place in June 2024 where there were works from 68 artists from around the world! We are looking forward to welcome the artists in 2025.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Looking back on my path I feel that 3 things contributed to my success. Education taught me how to use the materials of art making. Persistence in developing my unique painting technique that has set me apart from other artists. Lastly and no less important is always striving to grow as an artist and staying true to my vision.

For those considering an artistic life path be sure to surround yourself with kind, encouraging people. Being an artist takes courage so it is important to have people around you that you can count on.

Is there a particular challenge you are currently facing?

My biggest challenge currently is finding enough creative time. Even thought I have help running the gallery it takes up a lot of the time I would be spending making art. I am working to solve this challenge by limiting the opportunities I am invited to participate in and delegating office tasks to others.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Photography By: Judy Reed

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