l o c a l a r t i s t
Paint Me Back Home How Susan Benton turned a near fatal accident into a passion for a lifetime b y M i c h a e l J . P a l l e r i n o
T he story—the memories—never fade. In 1998, after a head on collision, Susan Benton fractured every- thing on her body except for her right arm and the bones in her face. She also had a lacerated liver and two punctured lungs. After multiple blood and platelet trans- fusions and surgeries, along with several weeks in SINU at Baptist Hospital in Pensacola, she ended up on the orthopedic floor for the next month. It was there her physical and mental fight for recov- ery ensued. Uninterested in TV, Benton was given a sketch pad and began to draw. Upon finally making it
coastal landscape work via word of mouth, and at a local business in Seaside. She joined the Cultural Arts Alliance in 1999 and, in 2018, held her first showing. Currently, her work can be found in fine art galleries in the Southeast, in private and select public collections locally and nationally, and has been the design focus in multiple editorial features.
home and another eight weeks before she could bear any weight, her mother, a watercolor artist, gave her some col- ored pencils and a small paint set to pass the time. Before you get to the part of the story where art helped inspire Benton’s recovery and alter the course of her life’s work, you have to go back to the beginning. Graduating from Louisiana State University in 1988, she studied art in a variety of forms. As an educator, Benton taught art to her early childhood and elementary school students. She eventually put the brushes down and pursued grant writing.
The accident, and all its toil, changed that. Changed her. “Due to my accident, I learned more than I ever planned regarding the human body. My early sketches began as female figures in nude. My accident was a significant trauma in my life. I found healing through the Gulf waters, the bay, and the lakes of South Walton.” Benton says that while water holds myriad symbolic meanings, for her it provides purity and tranquility. She seeks to create appealing shades that look welcoming and inviting, with an element of movement and action. “The world and our society are chaotic. I have lived in unintentional chaos throughout most of my life. I find painting to be cathartic, healing. I like to translate positivity onto my canvases through calm and light. Spending time in nature reduces stress. A number of studies have found it can help lower blood pressure and alleviate depression and anxiety. I’m a homebody, drawn to quiet spaces. But the vastness of the Gulf, along with our rare coastal dune lakes, springs, and the bay, offers a certain kind of expanse and flow. The water is large, but it draws you in close. Like a big hug. I want people to feel that through my art.” In 1999, Benton followed her parents who lived in South Walton. She began painting regularly with her mother, eventually selling some of her abstracts and
“Life is constantly moving and evolving, and I want my artwork to do the same. My faith is a huge part of my life. I want to capture God’s presence in my work. We encounter his creations every single day in everything around us, and that’s what I’m trying to capture.” As much as painting drives her, she has another passion. She’s a foodie. Her blog, 30Aeats.com, was the first one in the area. In addition, Benton has written and published two corporate cookbooks, and serves as a food and travel writer for various outlets across the country. As for the future, Benton will continue painting, cooking, and serving the community she loves. “I’ve learned the hard way not to make too many plans, but to live each day and moment to its fullest. I have a few
Susan Benton
things up my sleeve, like expanding my artwork to incorporate different mediums, and completing my own cookbook I’ve had on the back burner. But I’m most ecstatic about the arrival of my first grandbaby. My late husband always said that life is not a dress rehearsal, so I’m trying to live by that mantra.” susanbentonart.com • susanbentonart@gmail.com 30A In Person: Beau Interiors, Grayton Beach, Florida Instagram: @30aeats; @susanbentonart Blog: 30Aeats.com
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