Shannon Newby
Loves woodworking, designing games, gardening and kayaking
Shannon is the founder of Kid Lab. In her role, she works closely with Susan to design playful learning experiences for young children and create community-driven art projects that pop up around the city. She has worked with organizations like Marbles Kids Museum, the Portland Children’s Museum, Moore Square, Dix Park and a number of local schools to design site-specific art projects, often created in collaboration with children and their families.
Shannon has a Bachelor’s degree in studio art and education and a Master’s degree in applied theology and visual art.
When she’s not teaching or spinning up new projects, Shannon can usually be found tinkering in her workshop, working in her garden or riding her bike in East Raleigh with her husband and two daughters. More of Shannon’s artwork can be found here.
Susan Kelly
Loves watercoloring, floral design, gardening and just about any DIY project
Susan Kelly began painting and designing flowers on her family farm in the Mississippi Delta. After receiving her Bachelors of Fine Art from Louisiana State University in 1999, she travelled to the hills of Tuscany, where she began her first watercolor journals. In 2003, she received her MFA from the University of Mississippi, and then followed the well-trodden artists' path to New York City, working in floral design while painting and showing her art.
Susan has honed her watercolor skills on travels through Europe and Central and South America, filling journals with daily experiences. While painting the Corcovado in Rio de Janeiro, she arrived upon her now-signature "sketch portrait" style. Her first commission came as a bit of a surprise; sitting on the beach in Florida, a mother noticed Susan and her journal, and convinced her to paint her children. Since then, Susan estimates she has created over 2,500 sketch portraits of children, families, weddings, pets, and houses.
Her work work has been featured in exhibitions in New York, NY; Cortona, Italy; New Orleans, LA; and Oxford and Jackson, MS. She has been featured in Southern Living, Design*Sponge, Holly Mathis Interiors, and Paper and Ink. She is married to artist Daniel Kelly IV and has 2 children, Mary Martha and Jeffery. More of Susan’s artwork can be found here.
