The Native American aesthetic that surrounded Susan Budge in her formative years reveals itself in her work to varying degrees. She says, “My creative process is spontaneous and the influences I draw from are not always intentional but rather guided by my subconscious. According to the Natural History Museum of Utah, Kachina figures represent the spiritual beings who help Pueblo culture survive. They are used to provide guidance as spirits or personification of elements in the real world. ‘Koyemsi,’ also known as the ‘Mudhead,’ is the holy clown of the Kachinas. They may engage in games with the children during breaks in dance. ‘Koshare’ represents spirits in ceremonies invoking rain and fertility, often seen with a watermelon, as glutinous, and acting out as an unacceptable trickster to remind the community of acceptable and harmonious standards of behavior. I hope these ‘Cosmic Kachinas’ help people connect to the spiritual and physical worlds with an understanding of the importance of every culture and all life. May they remind us to respect even that which we may not understand.”

Budge works in clay and bronze sculpture with influences from biomorphism and surrealism. She holds a BFA from Texas Tech University, Lubbock; an MA from University of Houston-Clear Lake; and an MFA from The University of Texas at San Antonio. With a long career in arts education, including San Jacinto College, Houston; Angelo State College, San Angelo; and The Glassell School of Art, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Budge has also served on the board of Texas Sculpture Group since 2014. Her works have been in hundreds of exhibitions, including solo shows at Art League Houston; Dock Space, San Antonio; Galeria Ortiz Contemporary, San Antonio; Heidi Vaughn Fine Art, Houston; Redbud Arts Center, Houston; and The Nave Museum, Victoria. Budge’s sculptures are in the permanent collections of Art Museum of South Texas, Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi; Clara M. Lovett Art Museum, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff; Daum Museum of Contemporary Art, Sedalia, Missouri; Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, Massachusetts; Honolulu Museum of Art; New Orleans Museum of Art; San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts; San Antonio Museum of Art; and Smithsonian, Washington, D.C.