My love of creativity is the basis of my 20 years of experience in the design industry, my career as a designer and eventually a Creative Director, and led to me founding Art+Soul Design Studio in 2014.
I have a degree in Fine Art from Emily Carr University in Vancouver, Canada, have been in numerous art shows including two solo shows, and am also an illustrator.
I have a degree in Psychology from the University of Toronto and use everything I know to help my clients connect deeply with their target audience.
I'm passionate about social good projects and believe that self-actualization and authentic connection with others is the key to just about everything great in life.
I have a genuine interest in my clients as people and often ask clarifying questions about their own sense of alignment with their business (indeed, my services sometimes dip into "self discovery" territory).
There is a deliberate decision behind every choice I make, whether I'm creating brands, websites, apps or any other kind of strategic communication or campaign.
Once I understand the overarching objective, I gain a deep understanding of the psychology of the specific target audience. Based on that combined knowledge, I develop a well-calculated, strategic plan that flows through to each and every aspect of the project.
I spent the first half of my career at an international urban planning, landscape architecture and engineering firm. I worked my way up from graphic designer to Strategic Communications & Branding Specialist to Creative Director. I hired, directed and mentored a wonderful team of ten designers and developers. I was responsible for the creative direction of all marketing initiatives and worked on large multi-disciplinary international projects, such as the Master Plan for Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
Since starting my own firm, I have had the distinct pleasure of being able to work with a wide range of clients: nonprofits seeking to empower women, thought leaders and solopreneurs looking to change the world, ecommerce visionaries, transformational coaches and facilitators, the largest kombucha distillery in New York State and an international toy company.
I was born in Palo Alto, California, spent half my life in Toronto, and currently live on the west coast in beautiful Victoria, Canada. I adore movies (all time favs: The Nightmare Before Christmas, The Matrix, The Woman King), get a kick out of performing (I'm a Second City Improv grad), crave reading (favs: Daring Greatly, Egalia’s Daughters: A Satire of the Sexes, The Minimalist Entrepreneur), delight in adventures (best so far: Barcelona!) and love hanging out doing just about anything with my soulmate, Kirk, and our two seriously adorable cats.
“Suzanne can be best described as a ‘unicorn’ in her field. My experience working with her left me astounded.
She offers on-point insights that go beyond pretty surface level design. Her depth of understanding is unparalleled—combining her knowledge of design and the arts with a deep understanding of the psychology of her clients and their customers.
Beyond being a talented design professional, Suzanne is a wonderfully supportive partner and co-collaborator. She works with humor and grace, and her work ethic is incredible.”
“Styles come and go. Good design is a language, not a style.”
“Holy cow—Suzanne gets it—'all' of it! Her design work is fantastic and her customer service is awesome too. Double whammy! I love working with her.”
“Art+Soul identifies a project's essential messages and uses design elements to communicate them across the entire project...indeed, to the content of each and every page. Our Spin Master book turned out far beyond my imaginings. The reception was incredible.”
“I've lost count of the number of people who have raved to me about how much they love the brand, website and video.
Suzanne took my vision and brought it to life. She knew exactly what needed to happen. Everything was flawless.
Suzanne is a kind, authentic soul whose integrity is off the charts. Her work is brilliant. I am both grateful and blessed to have worked with her.”
“Working with Suzanne has been a highly engaging, collaborative and inspiring experience—not to mention fun! She brought incredible passion, creativity and marketing acumen to our project, resulting in a high-quality, tailor-made communications tool that went beyond our expectations.”
“Suzanne has a natural talent for helping people uncover what really makes them tick, in ways that go far beyond the usual mission statement or a list of values. She helps you dig out the 'why'—the unique passion that underlies what you do—and then finds the most compelling ways to tell that story.”
Where do new ideas come from? The answer is simple: differences. Creativity comes from unlikely juxtapositions.”
“Suzanne is the most brilliant creative, strategist, and designer I have ever worked with (and I've worked with like...so freaking many of them).
I loveee working with Suzanne because she provides the most rigorous analysis.
The website is everything I ever wanted. I could not have asked for a better partner, illustrator, and creative consultant to help me finally bring this site to the level it deserves! It’s better than I ever imagined."
“Suzanne is a joy to work with. She is a builder of teams, a conquerer of design projects, and an amazingly authentic person.
She is committed to the work she does and thoughtful towards those she works with.
As a designer and creative thinker, she sees the whole picture and stays true to the underlying messages of a project.
10/10 people would work with this lady again.”
“The goal of a designer is to listen, observe, understand, sympathize, empathize, synthesize, and glean insights that enable him or her to ‘make the invisible visible.’
“Art+Soul Design is amazing. Combining graphic arts skills with marketing knowledge, they make your brand a conversation piece and a point of connection with your audience—which is infinitely more valuable than just a pretty picture.”
