I am mega-proud of my amazing client, Susan Beallor Snyder. I have watched Susan transform from a Westport homemaker/mother extraordinaire with a huge talent and small business as a goldsmith, into a full-fledged artist/sculptor working in a new medium and expressing herself with confidence, discipline and elegance. Her current work has been featured in galleries and media throughout Atlanta.

Behind every piece is a narrative that inspires Susan. The titles of the works invite you to contemplate the conversation the artist is beginning: All Tied Up in Knots, Going in Circles, Inner Struggle, etc.

Rather than limiting Susan, staying focused on her work with rope has actually freed her up to greater creativity and increased her dedication to her art. Presently, she’s working on her largest piece to date and hopes to show her art in public spaces and museums.

Her new website featuring only her rope medium launches this week. Narrowing her focus simply to pieces made in this powerful medium has been a journey.  It’s meant saying no to the inviting distractions of her multiple other muses. Susan excels at photography, encaustic painting, jewelry-making and mixed media. To zero in on this niche has been transformative and rewarding. When someone makes it this simple for us to see and appreciate her work so clearly, you have to be aware that there were masses of information that needed to be edited out in order to attain this clarity.

I learned this lesson in my own art career. One of the hardest things I had to do in that part of my business was to say “no” to any of my precious creations. The graphic designer I hired to create my first brochure made me.

“Pick four styles to focus on, and then select representative pieces within those styles for this marketing piece we’re creating.” Ouch!

Fortunately, I heeded her wisdom, narrowed my design offerings to Ukrainian, Black + White, Paisley and Egyptian. Here’s one page of that brochure:

I offered my other ‘gems’ at craft shows and studio sales, but not for wholesale accounts. And guess what? My business grew exponentially.

I wish the same for Susan Beallor Snyder and all of you who are willing to take the risk of narrowing your focus and the courage to announce it to the world.

Well done, Susan!