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Susan Seddon Boulet: The Goddess Paintings
Psyche, Athena, Gaia and forty-two other goddesses from diverse cultural traditions come to vibrant life through the luminous brush of Susan Seddon Boulet. Insightful text by writer Michael Babcock offers cultural and historical context for the work.
128 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 1994
About the author
Susan Seddon Boulet
20 books8 followersSusan Eleanor Seddon was born in Brazil in 1941 of English parents who had emigrated from South Africa. Two years later her mother died, shortly after the birth of her second child, Patrick.
Ms. Boulet's early childhood was spent on a large citrus and cattle ranch. She loved the connection to nature offered by farm life and enjoyed a rich fantasy life fed by folk tales told her by her father and by the farmworkers. Encouraged by her father, she began drawing; her first subjects were the cows and horses of the farm. While Boulet took art classes off and on during her life, beginning in her finishing school years in Lusanne, Switzerland, she never studied art formally. She said, in fact, that she never planned on becoming an artist--the vocation came to her as by accident.
Boulet came to the US in 1967 to work for Braniff Airlines. It was also in this year that she met and married Lawrence Boulet, who inspired Susan to invest herself seriously in her art. Boulet credited the birth of her son Eric, in 1969, with freeing her creativity, saying that Eric "somehow freed the child in me; gave me permission to enjoy fantasy . . . gave me permission to do unicorns and dragons." Boulet began selling her art in 1970. By 1972, aided by her husband who managed all nonartistic aspects of her career, she was supporting the family. In 1980 her husband died of cancer.
Much of Boulet's work from the 1970s pictures cheerful images from fairytale and fantasy-jesters, knights, mermaids, magicians, and the like-executed in rainbow-bright colors. Around 1980 Boulet produced 'I Heard the Owl Call my Name', the first in a series of paintings that pointed to a new direction in Boulet's work. From this point on, Boulet painted images that she felt tapped into the essence of the collective human unconscious---images of goddesses from various cultures and Native American shamanic images that married the forms of animal and human into a coherent whole. Boulet drew the inspiration for her art from a wide variety of sources: mythology and poetry, Jungian psychology and worldwide spiritual traditions, as well as deep love of animals and the natural world.
Today Susan Seddon Boulet's paintings are held in collections around the world. Susan Seddon Boulet died in her home in Oakland on April 28, 1997 after a long struggle with cancer. She was fifty-five.
From Pomegranate.com
Ms. Boulet's early childhood was spent on a large citrus and cattle ranch. She loved the connection to nature offered by farm life and enjoyed a rich fantasy life fed by folk tales told her by her father and by the farmworkers. Encouraged by her father, she began drawing; her first subjects were the cows and horses of the farm. While Boulet took art classes off and on during her life, beginning in her finishing school years in Lusanne, Switzerland, she never studied art formally. She said, in fact, that she never planned on becoming an artist--the vocation came to her as by accident.
Boulet came to the US in 1967 to work for Braniff Airlines. It was also in this year that she met and married Lawrence Boulet, who inspired Susan to invest herself seriously in her art. Boulet credited the birth of her son Eric, in 1969, with freeing her creativity, saying that Eric "somehow freed the child in me; gave me permission to enjoy fantasy . . . gave me permission to do unicorns and dragons." Boulet began selling her art in 1970. By 1972, aided by her husband who managed all nonartistic aspects of her career, she was supporting the family. In 1980 her husband died of cancer.
Much of Boulet's work from the 1970s pictures cheerful images from fairytale and fantasy-jesters, knights, mermaids, magicians, and the like-executed in rainbow-bright colors. Around 1980 Boulet produced 'I Heard the Owl Call my Name', the first in a series of paintings that pointed to a new direction in Boulet's work. From this point on, Boulet painted images that she felt tapped into the essence of the collective human unconscious---images of goddesses from various cultures and Native American shamanic images that married the forms of animal and human into a coherent whole. Boulet drew the inspiration for her art from a wide variety of sources: mythology and poetry, Jungian psychology and worldwide spiritual traditions, as well as deep love of animals and the natural world.
Today Susan Seddon Boulet's paintings are held in collections around the world. Susan Seddon Boulet died in her home in Oakland on April 28, 1997 after a long struggle with cancer. She was fifty-five.
From Pomegranate.com
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
August 7, 2011
I simply ADORE this book. I had first experienced it years ago and I recently added it to my collection. Everyone should have the opportunity to at least thumb through the exquisite illustations be it at a bookstore/library. There's at least one that will elicit a visceral reaction. And that's a good thing! lol
January 30, 2009
The Goddess paintings are beautiful. Goddess from various cultures are represented.
March 7, 2010
WOW what a beautiful book this is! She is an amazing artist, truly brilliant! It really celebrates the beloved Goddesses she portrays through her gorgeous paintings with interesting information about each of them. It would make lovely coffee table book or nice gift for any art lover or fantasy art lover. It is truly a wonderful book to enjoy again and again.
August 24, 2010
This is a gorgeous book with paintings of Goddesses by Susan Boulet. The pictures are reproductions of her magnificent portrayals of the ancient goddesses with text that brings into focus the goddesses relevance for us in the world. It is an awesome addition to the goddesses group to which I belong and certainly helps in my understanding of what we are studying.
July 31, 2010
A gift from my mother many years ago. It was burned in my apartment fire. Beautiful paintings.
March 15, 2021
Wow. Just wow! This conglomeration of mythical femininity is full, concise and absolutely beautiful.
February 8, 2016
Very nice selection of paintings from a modern master's work. Recommended
April 28, 2017
Also amazingly beautiful and evocative and heart warming. The mythology and stories is fascinating.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews