We recently connected with Susan Moncada and have shared our conversation below.

Susan, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

For some, the journey to becoming a professional artist begins early and follows a straight and narrow path. That was not the case for me! My practical disposition, German genes and Type-A personality ruled my life for many years. I retired from a 45 year career as a Medical Laboratory Scientist, spending the first half in Montana and the last 20 years at a large Medical University Transfusion Service in South Carolina.
Even though my work world was full of rules, regulations and procedures, I always loved my free time creative pursuits! Whether it was basket weaving, quilting, sewing, or furniture refinishing, the act of creating something served to add balance and joy to my life. While in South Carolina, I took a decorative painting class. Being an addicted thrifter, I began painting every wooden bowl, plate or picnic basket I could find! There were lots!
But Montana beckoned me back! My life was now a blank slate and I had choices! While my painting “hobby” was enjoyable, I viewed it as such and considered it a craft. I also needed an outlet for my engrained work ethic and desire to be productive. I wanted to continue painting but without the prescriptive confines of decorative arts. I wanted to become a “Fine Artist”! So on a whim, I took classes from a local palette knife artist, whose work I admired. IT JUST CLICKED! I could do this! I visited every painter on the local “Open Studio Tour” , got inspired and within a year had rented studio space and enrolled in the Montana Arts Council Artrepeneur Program.
I have now returned to my beloved West, living on a mountain top, painting the wildlife and scenery that beckoned me back!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I have replaced the rules and regulations of Laboratory Life with the unlimited freedom of color, paint and texture. I have abandoned my left brain self and continue working to develop my right brain muse.
I celebrate my return to the West by painting western animals both wild and domestic, landscapes that capture the vast views of Big Sky Country and flowers that signal the emergence of spring and summer in the mountains.
While my subject matter is diverse, my style remains consistent. I have found palette knife technique to be the perfect medium for combining my love of vibrant color with rich textures. My oil based art captures the subject matter in a way that resembles a complex mosaic; an impressionistic whole made up of beautiful variegated parts. The result is art that is perfectly imperfect! The vibrant colors bring visual joy and the thick paint renders a texture that begs to be touched.
One of my proudest moments came early in my transition to becoming an artist. Overcoming a lot of self doubt, I entered my first juried show just a year after beginning to paint. I was amazed when my painting was accepted and even more amazed when it received the Third Place Award! Icing on the cake, was that someone actually bought it! While seasoned artists take such things in stride, for a beginner this was the perfect trifecta! You’d have thought I’d won the lottery!

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

For me, the most rewarding aspect of being an artist is two-fold; internal rewards and external recognition.

The internal rewards are many!

First is the self satisfaction of having worked to become the best artist I can be; a goal never totally achieved. The growth of a true artist is an ongoing event throughout their entire lives. Practice combined with study is a recipe for success. In my career, I have been blessed to have studied with some of the best palette knife artists of our time, and in the words of one of these greats, “Miles and miles of canvas” is the practice needed to be the best you can be!

Another more subtle internal reward is the joy and peace my art brings to my life. I am living my dream on a mountain top in the most beautiful place on earth.. To be able to capture that beauty through my art and know that it will be around to be shared with others long after I am gone brings me both joy and peace.

External rewards provide balance to the benefits of being an artist and add validity to the profession.. I am amazed and grateful every time someone purchases a piece of my art. Collectors have become friends. Friends have become collectors. And the brotherhood of artists supporting artists completes this external circle of rewards!

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

Early in my pursuit of a second career in Fine Art, I found out about a unique program offered through the Montana Arts Council. The Montana Artrepeneur Program (MAP) is an art-centered business development program taught by working artists. It is an intensive program of coursework designed to provide aspiring creatives the tools needed to achieve a sustainable life as an artist.
This class was invaluable in my path to establishing myself as a working artist. Not only did it provide specific strategies and tools, but it gave me the confidence to call myself an “artist”, a term I now associate with a credible career.
Using the lessons learned, I am able to present a professional product in a professional way, gaining the trust and respect of my customers, past, present and future.
I would highly recommend that aspiring artists seek out similar courses or programs to develop this side of their journey.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.susanmoncada.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/suemoncada/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/susanmoncadaart/