Susan Opie
Meet the Designer-Artist
Where do you live?
Bucks County, Pennsylvania
Describe your artistic style.
Sculptural, offbeat.
What inspires you as a designer-artist?
Art and nature.
What materials do you most enjoy working with?
Gemstones, precious metals.
What is the name of the piece you submitted with your success story?
Button Up and Out of The World
How did it come together? For example, did you plan it out or did it define itself once you began working?
I don't draw designs. It is worked out in my head, but the materials can influence the work in progress.
When and how did you begin making jewelry/beading?
My dad was an amateur lapidist, and I started setting his stones forty years ago.
Do you have an artistic background?
BFA painting MFA print making. Unfortunately, I never took any jewelry classes.
How did you discover Fire Mountain Gems and Beads®?
It was too long ago to remember.
What role does jewelry-making play in your life?
I am a sculptor working with cast bronze, and jewelry is both an extension and a counterpoint to my large work.