Meet the Teacher
My name is Susannah Robertson and I am the founder and teacher at The Art Room East. I was raised on a small farm in New England where our kitchen drawers were filled with art supplies and my siblings and I were free to explore and play in the sprawling woods that surrounded our home. When I wasn’t doing chores, I took full advantage of this freedom by helping my brother build elaborate forts with fallen saplings and twine, crushing berries and using the juice to paint pictures on the footpath and coloring, cutting and gluing anything I could get my hands on. My grandmother and great-aunt, both accomplished artists, recognized my budding interest in the arts and invited me to join them on their painting outings on the coast. I loved watching them search for the perfect view, set up their easels, and settle in to paint!
As I grew older I knew that I wanted to share the same encouragement with others that I had enjoyed as a child. Shortly after graduating from the University of Vermont with a Bachelor of Science in Art Education, I accepted my first job offer to teach art at a small elementary school in the foothills of Denver, Colorado. I happily discovered that by accepting this position, I had been taken in by a community of teachers who deeply valued the arts and who provided me with the support I needed as a young teacher to build a strong foundation for the rest of my career in teaching.
During the summers, I worked as a baker on a dude ranch in the Bighorn Mountains. I fell in love with the area (and my husband, Paul!) so I left my teaching position in Colorado to settle in Buffalo, Wyoming. While working as a literacy aide for Kindergarten students, I opened an after-school art program for children, was an active member of the Johnson County Arts Council, and served as a teaching artist on the Wyoming Arts Council’s Arts Across Wyoming Roster.
When our two daughters were born we relocated to Montana to be closer to family. My energy went into raising Sophia and Georgia and I built a small business hand-painting furniture for children. I loved having an outlet for my creative energy and was thrilled to participate in the juried Sweet Pea Festival for the Arts in Bozeman. I went on to earn a Montessori teaching certificate as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies. After teaching in various primary classrooms in the Montana public school system, I was reminded of the importance of art in the core curriculum for every young student, and I was inspired to return to my teaching roots.
The Art Room East was established in 2020 to provide the children of our community with a nurturing studio space where they feel safe and free to create!
“Imagination does not become great until human beings, given the courage and the strength, use it to create.”
— Maria Montessori
