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A few words from Susan

My fairies are real! They are as real as they can be! They have only recently come to me as an art subject after having spent most of my life taking an interest in them. As an avid reader, magic, metaphysics, myth and fantasy have been the passion of a lifetime for me. The works of such authors as Tolkien and Marion Zimmer Bradley; and stories such as Thomas the Rhymer have always peopled my world. And while I’ve forever had an interest in Art, the Fairies have only insisted on my bringing them through into the material world of existence since mid 2002.

At any rate, my Fairies kept after me until finally I got the message.

The Internet has also been very instrumental in bringing my Fairies to life, because once I discovered how much Fairy information was out there, I was able to study the work of so many wonderful Fairy artists and to realize that it was something wonderful that I too, wanted to do. I have had very definite pictures in my head of what a Fairy should look like, for a good while now. Mind you, it’s been a nagging picture. The Fairy folk have been nudging me for quite some time. I would see a picture and think to myself “Where are the long thin legs?” or “Why doesn’t she have slanted eyes and a pointed chin?”

Now, mind you, there are at least as many Fairy types as there are human, and so if you see one Artist portraying one type of Fairy, and another portraying something else, well, that’s the particular Fairy type that’s coming through asking to be expressed by that particular Artist. It’s what’s in his or her head and heart! So many wonderful Fairy Artists, and no two alike!

At any rate, my Fairies kept after me until finally I got the message. I decided that since I wasn’t seeing pictures of the type of Fairies that were in my mind, that perhaps it was my duty to draw Fairies “correctly” as I pictured them. Well, you could almost hear them cheering “She finally got the message!” Since that time, it’s been a work in progress trying to bring out the Fairies in my head and heart and set them down on paper, and I hope it will continue to be so for some time to come.

I learn and improve as I go. Each time a new Fairy comes to me, I work and work at bringing that particular Fairy into existence until I feel that I have captured the image of the Fairy that is trying to come through. Sometimes a sketch turns out to be fine, but I know it just isn’t the Fairy that I am supposed to be bringing through and it’s back to the drawing board until it comes out right. When I have it right, I just know! It’s as though I just recognizer her! Often I start a picture thinking I will do one thing, and the end result is quite different from what I intended originally. The Fairies always have their way, and I draw according to their dictates.

Choosing color for the picture works in the same manner. I may set out to do a yellow Fairy and find out that Blue is what the Fairies had in mind. I often dispose of the color I chose in favor of the color that particular Fairy prefers, only to find it greatly improves the picture. If I want to do a Fairy with a Magnolia hat, the Fairy may choose a Bluebell instead. I have learned to be flexible. They know what’s best and if I’m not appreciative of what they do for me, they will shut me down! I get Artist’s block until I remember to say thank you!

It is a partnership that demands respect and appreciation from me and by the same token I believe that they appreciate my efforts to express them and bring them into a three dimensional form for the enjoyment of others here in the material world. They tell me that while I am the vessel through which these things are served, that they are not mine alone but are their gift to you the viewer as well. These things have been shared with me so that I, in turn, may share with you a glimpse into their world of magic.

Susan Barchard Signature