Shakespeare's Auntie
Who were the women in Shakespeare’s life? His wife, Anne to whom he left his second-best bed? His daughter Susannah to whom he left everything else? His illiterate daughter Judith who got nothing? A mystery London lady-love? Perhaps.
One thing’s for sure. He must’ve had an Auntie. Someone who fussed over him, scrubbed his hose and darned his doublet. The Unknown Soldier of domesticity and duty.
A woman a bit like me … someone who has looked after others in work and play. Did she ever dream of writing a play, in-between pegging out the clothes and cooking the dinner?
Here is my work. Plays, books, musicals, poetry and art.
If it strikes a chord, get in touch.
Suzi Clark
Featured print - Doves over Gaza
Appalling savagery meted out to innocent Israeli citizens by the fanatical terrorists of Hamas on 7th October 2023 has unleashed a barrage of retribution bombing Palestinian citizens trapped in the Gaza Strip, killing many innocents.
Who can bring this terrible war to a close?
All yearn for peace and a safe home.
Original artwork in acrylics and wax using brass stencils - Suzi Clark October 2023 - all rights reserved - prints for sale for £40 plus P & P -
All proceeds to the British Red Cross.
Payment in advance please.
Contact me for more information.
Morocco & Libya September 2023
First the earthquake in Marrakesh where I was staying and the gradual realisation of the unfolding tragedy of the villages along the High Atlas. Then three days later, the catastrophic flooding and decimation of the eastern Libyan town of Derna. Over 11,000 innocent people swept to their death when the dams collapsed.
I grew up Tripoli from the age of 10 until I was 18 and left for boarding school in Britain. My dad worked for Amoseas (American Petroleum attached to Caltex) and my godfather next door worked for Esso. The enduring friendships forged in those early days of my childhood have made me who I am today. As far as I know, my school friends from Tripoli College live in western Libya are as safe as they can be in a country torn apart by civil war.
In 2005 Dad and I went on an unforgettable old school reunion in western Libya, flying down south to Sebha to camp in the Murzhak sand seas. Such stark beauty. It was also an opportunity to revisit the world heritage Roman coastal settlement sites of Sabratha and Leptis Magna.
When I started to paint during lockdown in 2020 - to my surprise what emerged from those faltering first canvases were the memories of Libya …
I have sold two paintings from that early collection already - and I will be replacing my current exhibition in Rickmansworth at Watersmeet Theatre on 8th October until the end of the month, with my remaining Libya collection - to help raise money for the #British Red Cross Libya appeal.
Keeping the faith over 60 years. Y’a biladi (translation - oh my country) …
Please email me if you’d like to see the full collection or details of price/size/media or framing. All are priced between £65 and £200. Hopefully some good can come from such sorrow ? All sale proceeds less gallery or postage costs will be donated to these causes. I love these paintings but better they help fund a better future than simply hang in my home studio or in view at nearby Herts galleries. I’m a member of the #HVAF (Artists in Herts).
These human tragedies in countries close to my heart - Morocco only known for the first time this year, Libya since 1962 - such a profound sadness.
Butterflies & Baked Beans
My first novel is for like-minded people my own age, facing the terrors and opportunities that come with being 60+.
Sookie, the heroine, is a little bit me and possibly a little bit you.
She skids into her sixties believing it’s going to be a doddle. After all, isn’t every turning point as much of an opportunity as a disaster?
She feels confident she can re-invent herself from company director to carer to land-lady, just as she adapted from daughter to wife to mother to widow and back to daughter.
How hard can it be? She plunges into stormy waters, through floods, hurricanes and the uncharted waters of internet dating. She can handle a randy lodger never mind a neurotic wolfhound called George. Her girlfriends, the Marigolds, say that her adventures are more entertaining than watching East Enders.
But like most optimists, Sookie only sees the hole in the doughnut after she’s fallen through it. A heart-warming tale of friendship, fun and magic – guaranteed to begin in delight and end in wisdom.
Butterflies and Baked Beans - available on Amazon.com
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Coming soon...
Honeybees and Heartburn - Sookie's next adventure which I hope to publish by Christmas 2022.
The story tackles internet dating, and what happens when you marry in haste … as well as finding and losing love in later life.
Sookie finds herself in the middle of more muddle than before - and there's already laughter and tears, and I'm only halfway through writing it!
Summer Art Exhibitions
I show my work in public exhibitions around Hertfordshire. If you'd like more details about any or to visit my studio please get in touch. Otherwise I hope you can make it to an exhibition.
2023
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Big Art Fair Hitchin 2023 (preview night 23rd - public view 24/25th June 2023) 10am - 4pm Hitchin Old Town Hall, Brand Street, SG5 1HX
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Burstons Garden Centre, North Orbital Road, St Alban s AL2 2DS 13th - 29th August 2023
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Aldenham Art Festival 8th - 10th and 15th - 17th September 2023 - Aldenham Church, Church Lane, Aldenham WD25 8BE
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Watersmeet, Rickmansworth, 28th June - 8th October 2023 - High St, Rickmansworth WD3 1EH
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Samples of my recent work can be see at the Herts Visual Arts website here
