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SUSAN STOCKDALE began her art career in 1976 as a painter of fantasy landscapes, which she exhibited in galleries and juried shows. From the beginning, her love of pattern and color was a distinctive feature of her artwork.
This talent for creating patterns led Stockdale to freelance as a textile designer for the apparel industry in the 1980s, when she designed fabric for clothing companies including Martex, Belle France and John Anthony. During this time, she continued exhibiting her whimsical images. Her paintings won awards in juried exhibitions including Southern Homes Magazine’s “Visual Arts for the Home” and were reproduced as note card covers by Portal Publications.
In the 1990s, Stockdale began her children's book career with the publication of SOME SLEEP STANDING UP and NATURE'S PAINTBRUSH. SOME SLEEP STANDING UP took readers on a lighthearted exploration of how animals sleep, while NATURE'S PAINTBRUSH examined how patterns and colors in nature help living things survive. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution called NATURE'S PAINTBRUSH a “stunning work that goes far beyond celebrating patterns in nature” and the National Science Teachers Association selected it as an "Outstanding Science Trade Book for Children." Stockdale’s book, CARRY ME! ANIMAL BABIES ON THE MOVE, explored the many ways animal parents carry and care for their young. CARRY ME! won a 2005 Parents’ Choice Approved Award and was selected as a "Best Children's Book of the Year" by Bank Street College of Education. Her 2008 book, FABULOUS FISHES, introduces young readers to exotic and familiar fishes in simple, rhyming text and bright, bold colors. Selected as a NSTA "Outstanding Science Trade Book for Children," Kirkus Reviews calls it "an excellent teaching tool" and The Washington Post wrote, "If the paintings are the feast, Stockdale's words are the dessert." She is currently working on a picture book about birds. |
