About Susan

I’m a creative problem solver. I could describe myself as a designer, an artist, a teacher, or even a handy man, but I’m a bit of a renaissance woman and like to dabble in a lot of things.

I went to CU Boulder, originally to pursue engineering, but lacking the passion I was hoping for in my future, I changed majors and completed my bachelors in art and art history.

I found web design while working at the Western States Arts Federation. Originally thinking I was at WESTAF to pursue arts advocacy, I quickly trended toward working on the technology suite supporting the arts that the company created. Here I worked on a product called ZAPPlication, a platform supporting the arts festival industry. I worked maintaining the software system, providing training and support to artists and arts administrators, and developing a sister product to ZAPPlication.

While working on this product I worked with every touchpoint of the system, from customer support, to design, and enhancement implementation with developers. Seeing the ins and out of maintaining functionality of a product, educating and supporting users, and designing future iterations, I developed a deep understanding of user empathy and passion for design that brings ease to the user and is efficient for a business to support.

The design work I did with WESTAF captured my analytical mind and creative inclination. I hadn’t found work that engaged both of these prior, so I decided to dive deeper into this work and expand my knowledge with the UX Academy program with Designlab.

Prior to WESTAF my background creating art installations and teaching creativity based classes laid a foundation for creating and curating human experiences where I developed an understanding and passion for visual communication.

More about me...

When I’m not designing, I love to rock climb, hike, work with ceramics, cook, bake, and dance. I’m a maker and mover and am inspired by experiences and the community cultivated in these spaces.