Susan Grant’s practice is rooted in a deep concern with contemporary society, understood within historic political, social, architectural and spiritual contexts. Her work often explores both the shifting issues within communities and the unchanging cycles of life that bind people together. While based in Aberdeen, her focus grew out of an examination of intensive urban living, studying the structures of Scottish tenements and tower blocks—dense vertical communities, made up of many small cells, with limited channels of communication.
At Highgreen, Susan continued her investigation into the structure of communities and their relationship to the places they inhabit. She turned her attention to how buildings are used, how land is shaped, and how these have changed across the past century in rural Northumberland. Her research led to a body of work that was firmly rooted in Tarset, reflecting both the landscape and the people who live there.
Her main areas of exploration included the relationship between leisure time and work time, and the evolving uses of the countryside—from industrial and agricultural labour, to hunting and extraction, to its modern role as a destination for leisure. She also examined the nature of community life in an isolated and dispersed rural setting, paying close attention to the ways industry, religion and technology have influenced and transformed village life.
Local people played an important part in her project. Many contributed directly to her work by sharing their stories and reflections on rural life through recorded interviews, offering personal insights into what it means to live in Tarset. Others opened their family albums, providing a rich visual archive of local history. These materials became essential strands in Susan’s practice. She drew connections between them and wove them into pieces that resonated with both contemporary life and historical memory.
Her final works ranged from delicately drawn building outlines made on local slate to complex mixed-media installations combining text, sound and images. Together, they offered layered and thought-provoking perspectives on the realities of living in a rural community, while also evoking its history and sense of place.
Susan also worked closely with local schools. She spent several days in each of the three nearest First Schools, guiding children as they drew pictures of their homes. These drawings were then transferred onto slate and acetate and later combined into a single, large projected composite image. The process was greatly enjoyed, and the resulting work formed a striking and imaginative portrait of community through the eyes of its youngest members.
