Suzanne Barnes

Suzanne Barnes is Professor of Illustration at Massachusetts College of Art and Design, a public college dedicated to art and design education in Boston, Massachusetts. She maintains an active professional career as a freelance illustrator with a wide range of national and regional clients.

Her educational background includes both a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) and a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, indicating rigorous training in visual arts and illustration.

Her research and creative interests center on illustration, drawing, and visual storytelling, often exploring themes from the natural world, including birds, animals, and symbolic forms. Her personal artwork, as seen in series like St. Hawk, Bowerbird's Things, and Pits, reflects a deep engagement with nature, myth, and materiality in art.

While no formal publications or research articles are listed, her artistic practice demonstrates a consistent and evolving inquiry into form, narrative, and ecological symbolism, placing her work at the intersection of fine art and professional illustration.

• Freelance Illustrator for major brands and institutions including Reebok, Harvard University, The Boston Globe, Scientific American, and The Mayo Clinic.
• Exhibited artistic series include Belted Kingfisher vs Leopard Frog, Greenheron vs Brassy Minnow, St. Crow, Roots, Stickbones, and Wrens.

She is not currently teaching courses, though she retains her faculty title and professional presence.