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SELECTED EXHIBITIONS	Watercolor West XXXIX Annual Juried Exhibition, Riverside Museum, Los Angeles, CA National Association of Women Artists: Miriam Schorr Memorial Award for Works on Paper National Watercolor Exhibition, New American Gallery, New York, NY, Honorable Mention Watercolor West XXX National Annual Exhibition, La Brea, CA Pennsylvania Watercolor Society 20^th International Juried Exhibition, Lancaster, PA Hilton Head Art League National Juried Exhibition, 5/5 – 6/10, Hilton Head Island, SC Montana Watercolor Society 17^th Annual National Exhibition, Bigfork, MT Eastern Washington Watercolor Society National Exhibition, Richland,WA Bedford Gallery Water+Color Juried Exhibition, Walnut Creek, CA Marin County Fair, Fine Art Exhibit, San Rafael, CA, First Place Award, Best in Class WASCO Aqua Areas ’00 Annual Juried Watercolor Exhibition, Peoples' Choice Award California Watercolor Association Winter Exhibit, Third Place Award Society of Western Artists Annual Exhibition, Academy of Art College Gallery,San Francisco, CA San Bernardino Art Assoc. Inland Exhibition XXXVI, 5/17 – 6/24, San Bernardino, CA Society of Western Artists National Open Competition, Merced, CA “Celebrate Agriculture with the Arts” Madera Arts Council, Madera, CA First Place Award WASCO Aqua Areas ’99 Annual Juried Watercolor Exhibition, Honorable Mention Mother Lode National 33^rd Annual Art Exhibition, Placerville, CA
GALLERIES	Lily Rock Gallery, Idyllwild, CA New American Gallery, New York, NY Bigfoot Gallery, Bigfoot, MT Fairmont Gallery, Sonoma, CA San Bernardino Museum, San Bernardino, CA Lancaster Art Museum, Lancaster, PA Blackhawk Gallery, Danville, CA Bedford Gallery, Walnut Creek, CA Walter Greer Gallery, Hilton Head Island, SC Riverside Gallery, La Brea, CA Academy of Art Gallery, San Francisco, CA Sonoma County Museum, Santa Rosa, CA Loanna Clark Gallery, Petaluma, CA
AFFILIATIONS	National Association of Women Artists Watercolor West (Juried Member) California Watercolor Association Society of Western Artists Watercolor Artists of Sonoma County Cultural Arts Council of Sonoma County Santa Clara Valley Watercolor Association
PUBLICATIONS	The Best of Flower Painting, Kathryn Kipp, North Light Books, 1997.
FESTIVALS	Bellevue Festival of the Arts, Bellevue, WA Southwest Arts Festival, Albuquerque, NM San Diego Arts Festival, San Diego, CA Saratoga Rotary Arts Festival, Saratoga, CA La Jolla Festival of the Arts, La Jolla, CA La Quinta Arts Festival, La Quinta, CA Sausalito Arts Festival, Sausalito, CA Mill Valley Arts Festival, Mill Valley, CA Palo Alto Fine Arts Festival, Palo Alto, CA Fine Art Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA Salute to the Arts, Town Square, Sonoma, CA Marin Art Festival, Civic Center Lagoon, Marin County, CALos Altos Rotary Fine Art Show, Los Altos, CA, Mayor's Choice Award International ArtExpo San Francisco, San Francisco, CA Capitola Arts Festival, Saratoga, CA Sacramento Fine Arts Festival, Sacramento, CA Napa Valley Mustard Festival, Napa, CA Palm Springs Art in the Village, Palm Springs, CA Celebration of Craftswomen, San Francisco, CA ARTrails, Sonoma County Cultural Arts Open Studio Tour
EDUCATION	Sonoma State University, Bachelor of Arts, Music Penn State University, University Park, PA, English Selected workshops: Intensive Studies Seminar, Taos, NM: Skip Lawrence, Katherine Lui, Fran Larsen, Christopher Schink & Alex Powers George James Workshop Don Andrews Workshop Jeanne Carbonetti Workshop John Salminen Workshop Jean Grastorf Workshop Arne Westerman Workshop Jane Hofstetter Peggi Kroll-Roberts Workshop Camille Przewodek Workshop John Robichaud: The Chama School/ Henry Hensche method, Chama, NM Plein Aire Painters of America Workshop, Scottsdale School, Wickenburg, AZ: Frank Lalumia, Mary DeLoyht-Arendt & Raleigh Kinney
	BIO Susan Adams grew up in eastern Pennsylvania. She studied English literature at Penn State University and holds a degree in Music from Sonoma State University. Motivated by curiosity, confidence and a steadfast optimism, Adams' journey has been a varied one. Her talent as a musician led to much success writing music and composing soundtracks for animated films. She performed in several rock bands and also played piano in her own jazz trio. Before becoming a full time fine artist, Adams spent many years as a senior animator and background illustrator for a nationally recognized software company where she gained recognition for her award winning animation work. Susan’s watercolor paintings have won numerous awards including the Miriam Schorr Award for Works on Paper from the National Association of Women Artists, New York. Her work has been exhibited in many national and international exhibitions. She is a featured artist in The Best of Flower Painting, North Light Books. Susan is a juried member of Watercolor West, a member of California Watercolor Association, Society of Western Artists, the National Association of Women Artists, Watercolor Artists of Sonoma County and the Sonoma County Cultural Arts Council. She maintains a working studio in the Petaluma countryside, where she also teaches classes and workshops.
	STATEMENT "As the sun colors flowers, so does art color life. --John Lubbock My aim is to be a visual poet, to capture both the quality of light and also the essence of soul in whatever I paint. My mission is to fuse visual and spiritual content with technical knowledge in order to build a bridge between the viewer and myself. It is a lifelong journey and begins with the fundamentals. I believe that mastering the fundamentals of any art form is liberating, giving one the freedom of effortless expression. Painting is at first about seeing. I see shapes and values, and arrange them into a pleasing composition. My seeing becomes more refined as I perceive the color of light and how it affects the color of objects. Claude Monet introduced this way of seeing and differentiating the color of morning light, light in full sun, light on a gray day, etc. For me, however, the art of seeing is not limited to the color of light on form; it is also about sensing the spirit that moves within that form. Objects, figures, landscapes—I ask myself, "What is the color of the spirit within?” As I evolve as an artist, the journey becomes a quest to know myself. My paintings—visual poems—are crafted from years of learning and processed through my logical left brain (the mind), my intuitive right brain (the body) and my spiritual essence, (the soul). They emerge as unique creations. As I evolve as an artist, the content becomes not so much about what I literally see or even feel, but more about who I am. I can begin to say, "This is what I made" instead of "this is what I saw", or even, "this is how I feel". It is my way seeking truth through art. It is a journey of love and devotion. I enjoy painting all genres: still life, abstraction, landscape and figurative. My medium of choice is watercolor, although I also paint with acrylics and oils. My abstractions are about pure shape, color, texture and line, held together with a strong underlying design. With still life, I respond to the silent life of everyday objects. My figurative work speaks to the inner life that unifies ordinary people. With landscapes I seek to honor the spiritual presence of living things in nature. I try to keep it simple: reflected light on a leaf, the glow in a shadow, sunlight in the forest, rain in the city—all excerpts from life's universal panorama—the art that colors my life.