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Susan "Raven" Priest was born in Columbus, Ohio, and moved to Lake In The Hills, Illinois in 1983. She now resides there with her husband, David, and two children. Before becoming a professional artist, she was a computer systems engineer. Raven works almost entirely in oils. Until 1994, she painted exclusively in watercolors and gouache (an opaque watercolor). Just for fun and variety, she will sometimes work with colored pencil. She finds this medium easier (and less dangerous) to work with at shows. Oils, however, are now her passion. |
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Raven taught herself to paint in oils, just as she is self-taught in watercolors and colored pencil. Her motto is that, if you are completely self-taught, there are no rules to break - no boundary lines to stay within. In that way, an artist can develop a completely individual style. Her style is very individual. She avoids the current trend toward a more impressionistic style. Her joy is in the detail, and realism. Her focus for the last twelve years has been her "1001 Nights of Wildlife Art" series. Each night painting will be numbered until she reaches 1001. In this series, Raven is working to capture the essence of the night. "Most animals are active only at night, unseen by people. I have a wonderful opportunity (and challenge) to explore a realm rarely depicted by wildlife artists." "It might be interesting
to explain why I embarked upon the "1001 Nights of Wildlife
Art" series. When I was in my early twenties, my eyes were
burnt in a freak accident. I was blind for 10 weeks. During which
time, I didn't know whether or not I would even see (or paint)
again. I had two choices: either give in to self-pity, or embrace
the darkness. In all honesty, I indulged in a bit of both. After
the ten weeks were up, and my eyes were unsealed, I was able
to see, but my pupils no longer functioned properly. My eyes
are extremely sensitive to light. On the upside, I can see like
a cat in the dark. The night is most comfortable to me. It has
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| Raven began participating in art shows professionally in February of 1992. At her first show, the Illinois Ducks Unlimited Wildlife Art Show, she took two first place awards, and one second place. She was hooked. Now she travels to wildlife art shows all over the country, including the prestigious Wildlife & Western Art Show in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the Northern Wildlife Art Expo in Lansing, Michigan, the National Wildlife Art Show in Overland Park, Kansas and the Florida Wildlife Expo in Lakeland. |
 Raven with a black panther at the 2003 Florida Wildlife Expo |
| Her paintings have received awards at the Michigan First of America Wildlife Art Festival, the Wyoming Conservation Stamp competition, and five first place awards from Illinois Ducks Unlimited, among others. Her work was judged Best of Show twice at the Southern Illinois Hunting & Fishing Days Show where she was the Featured Artist in 1996. She has also been the Featured Artist at the 1994 Mosquito Hill Wildlife Art Show of Appleton, Wisconsin, and the 1995 USA Sportsman's Expo in Little Rock, Arkansas. In 1996, she was awarded Best Of Show at the Wetlands For Iowa Wildlife Art Show & Sale in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She now has over thirty limited edition prints. |
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