Three Wishes: Susan Sully

In April I asked the good people at Rizzoli for permission to share select images from Susan Sully's recently released title, The Southern Cosmopolitan, and crossed my fingers with hope that the photograph of Amelia Handegan's sea sculpture would get the green light. Happily it did. When I posted it along with a brief description of Susan's book, the reaction was very positive so I knew I wanted to include her voice in the "Three Wishes" series.

First, a little background: Susan is the author and, more recently, photographer of many books about Southern architecture and design (and a rogue one on the subject of Moroccan living), including The Southern Cosmopolitan, The Southern Cottage, Charleston Style, and Casa Florida. She says that her books are not just about what is in the house, but why it is there, and how it relates to personal histories and fantasies, as well as the collective memories of a region. I happen to keep her newest title very close at hand.

The wishes Susan shared with me follow below. Pay special attention to the last one.

... that everyone might have a home--and one that fills them with serenity and joy;

. . . that I could visit a house in every country so I might constantly broaden my view of what is good and beautiful in the home; and

. . . that my books might never incite a sense of inadequacy, but rather inspire readers to create surroundings that reflect who they are and what they cherish.


Image two above © Southern Cosmopolitan: Sophisticated Southern Style by Susan Sully, Rizzoli New York, 2009.

Related past post of interest: Sea Sculpture.