Winter often results in locals migrating south looking to escape a long stretch of the cold Maine winter. Not Susan Decker. She may be a bird of a different feather, by migrating north from Tennessee to Maine in December. Decker is a painter and photographer with over 30 years’ experience. She is known for classic plein-air landscapes. Her works hang in many private collections and in the George W. Bush Policy Institute and George W. Bush Foundaton Presidential Library at Southern Methodist University in University Park, Texas. 

Decker was born in New Jersey and has spent most of her life in Dracut and Newburyport, Massachusetts. She moved to Tennessee in 2018 to recuperate from a motorcycle accident and be closer to her daughter’s family. Last year, Decker began thinking about trading her new urban location for a more rural one. She considered moving back to Newburyport, but the old neighborhood had changed. A conversation with an old Newburyport friend who moved to Waldoboro led Decker to move to Midcoast Maine. “I lived in Newburyport for 39 years, and it’s not what it used to be. I came to Maine, and I love it,” she said. “This town is quiet and exactly what I was looking for.” 

Decker still retains Tennessee residency. She is renting, but may consider buying property in Maine if she does not return to Tennessee. While in Maine, she will continue selling her artwork on commission and pursue other business interests. She is a self-taught artist and her work is influenced by classical masters and impressionists like Rembrandt and Monet. She specializes in life-size murals. She is in the honored company of “Copley Masters” such as John Singer Sargent, Whistler and Monet. The Copley Society of Art is the oldest non-profit art association in America. Artist membership is based on competitive review and acceptance in juried exhibitions. Decker’s prized works have been showcased in international art magazines and private collections worldwide. 

She once secured fifth place with her “Morning Rider” at the International Film Fest in California. IFQ Magazine listed her as one of the “Top 5 artists.” Her websites are susandeckercustomtiles.com and susandeckerphotoreflect.com