Susan Keetley I have always been fascinated with metaphysics and experienced a strong affinity with nature. As a direct descendant of the first settlers of Hornby Island and with additional native heritage, I spent my childhood exploring the wild and lovely province of British Columbia, Canada. Somewhat of a tomboy, I lived in my imagination, climbing trees, combing island shores, dodging waves and fishing the shoals. My native ancestors might describe me as one who belongs to the earth and passes through it.

My fascination for interesting geography has lead me to discover through photography, writing (Modern-Day Gothic Mystical Drama -- Inside the Gate of Winds) and now painting, the truly unusual and fantastical beauty of the natural world.

The canvas has become my second home. Personal freedom of action is all-important to me and, through the rendering of my inner world, painting satisfies my need for constant change, new experience and adventure. I have an experimental approach and often the best features are happy discoveries that magically find form on my canvases.

Generally self-taught, I attended Emily Carr Academy of Art and Design. I participated in painting, drawing and photography classes and was influenced by this dominant female figure and the group of seven, whose work inspired awe and reverence for the spiritual and sublime power of nature.

I have always sensed there is something out there, a vast moving realm, far more expansive than words can describe, an infinitely strange and marvellous flow, an ever-present, unknowable reality behind the shifting scene which our finite minds cannot completely comprehend. Painting gives me the ability to dream the world beyond.

I try to capture this divine essence as a thinly veiled, luminescent glow contained by the structural bones of the earth or universe. I prefer to paint with acrylics because of their versatile nature and am currently experimenting with mylar surfaces and gel paints, attracted by their translucent properties. I give extra attention to one feature in each painting so the eye is drawn and the viewer gets a sense of the miraculous, shining beauty of the landscape. I concentrate on the connectivity of lines and shapes as ultimately my paintings are an attempt to explore this mysterious flow of life through everything, a flow encouraged, particularly in the cave series, through harmonious colour transitions and natural, earth friendly, tones.

For me this is only the beginning of my explorations, which I hope will be enjoyed by all who view my work.