Art + Life

I’m an artist, writer, and creativity mentor based in Portland, Oregon. My work blends curiosity, care, and material play to explore what it means to live a deeply creative life.

I studied Graphic Design at Carnegie Mellon University (BFA), Communication at the University of Portland (MS), and Studio Art at Claremont Graduate University (MFA).

My Current Work

Fragments of Home: Reliquaries of Lived Experience
Hand-stitched textile reliquaries that trace my lifelong search for belonging. Using remnant fabrics, hand-crafted paper, earth-derived colors, and the meditative act of hand-stitching, I explore memory and hold reverent my attention to place.

Previous projects include: Stitch & So: A Contemplation of Repair and Renewal (2024-2025), Happy Scrappy Art: Giving Discards Life (2024), Shhh, Say Nothing: An honest look at silenced voices (2019-2021), Dot Dilemma: A reflection on incessant internal chatter that matters (2021-2024), and Three Squares a Day: Art not made in the kitchen (2011-2014). Each of these projects is an exploration of voice, attention, and the quiet persistence of daily creative work.

My work creates visual tension and layered abstraction to make sense of a chaotic world. Having grown up in Mexico and Brazil, I bring a broad cultural perspective to my creations. At the heart of my work is the belief that every voice matters—and that everyone deserves the chance to thrive.

©2025, Suzanne Gibbs
Fragments of Home #8 Born Into
Cotton, Felt, & Thread Art, Small Original Art
Approx. 4 x 3.5 inches. SOLD

Books & Writing

In addition to visual art, I write about the inner and outer landscapes of living a creative life.

Conscious Curiosity: Communicating to Connect
A heartfelt guide to deepening connection through conversation — blending personal stories, practical tools, and hundreds of questions to spark wonder, compassion, and lasting partnership.

My Year of Separation
A lyrical memoir of stepping away from everything familiar to find what remains — a journey through loss, solitude, and the stubborn hope of becoming whole.

Writing and art-making are inseparable for me — both are how I conjure meaning from the too-busy world around me.

Community & Mentoring

I host Sweet Antidote Sessions — bi-weekly Zoom gatherings for artists who want to slow down, reflect, and reconnect with their work and each other in community.

We call these meetups Flourish Friday; they serve as a gentle space to be witnessed, to vent or share dreams aloud, and to lift one another’s spirits. These sessions are part storytelling, part soul-tending, part creative refueling — an antidote to the busyness of modern life.

I’m also a mentor with Art Biz Connection, an online artist community founded by Alyson B. Stanfield. We support ambitious visual artists who are building thriving creative businesses. In the online community space, I host co-working sessions, Studio Talks, and Get It Done Days. If you’re navigating the overlap of art-making and entrepreneurship, I’m here to help — one grounded, intentional step at a time.

Listen as I talk with Alyson here.

🌿 Why I Make Art
Aphorisms from the studio

  • Play is my protest; whimsy, my weapon.
  • A dot is never just a dot—it’s a universe pretending to be small.
  • Grids look obedient, but mine keep secrets.
  • Slow stitches know more about patience than people.
  • Patterns hold us—until they break.
  • Playfulness, grief, and loss can share the same canvas.
  • I collect daily chaos and serve it back.
  • Scraps and fragments refuse to be nothing—pieced together, they belong.
  • My art is what happens when curiosity won’t shut up.
  • My silence becomes my story.

Mail Makes Connections Magical ✉️

Send me art, and I’ll send you art in return — free.
Send a letter with a few U.S. stamps, and I’ll surprise you with a small original.
Because I believe that art belongs in our everyday lives — and in our mailboxes.

🌟🌿🧵

Please note: SuzZine (a monthly zine -small magazine) is on sabbatical. I am not sure when this project will reemerge, but there are ideas percolating.

📞 Call or Text: 541-253-1258 for further inquiries and to see my art IRL.