​Blue Hill Art & Cultural Center

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BLUE HILL ART STAFF


Barbara J. Sussman, Art Consultant and Curator​

Joanna Dickey, Art Administrator



After 34 dedicated years of curating art exhibitions at Blue Hill Art & Cultural Center, Carolyn deLisser retired from her position in the Fall of 2013, and Barbara J. Sussman stepped in as the new art consultant and curator.


Barbara J. Sussman is an accredited member of the American Society of Appraisers designated as a fine arts specialist.  She is President of Fog Hill & Co., Inc. which is a fine arts service organization founded by her husband and herself in 1976. She has extensive education in the fine arts field, at the Rhode Island School of Design, Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture,  Skidmore College, George Washington University School of Professional Studies and the Art Students League of New York.  She is a Life Member of the Arts Students League and Artists Fellowship Organization of New York City.  She was awarded several New York State Council of the Arts grants for programs she developed. She enjoys a career as an art appraiser, professional artist and art consultant.  Barbara is  currently serving a term as Vice President and is past Treasurer and President of the American Society of Appraisers, Hudson Valley Chapter.  As an active member, she has organized many education programs about the appraisal profession.  Barbara’s curating positions include Vanity Fair’s Archived Photographic Collection, Memorial Sloan Kettering, Sidney Kimmel Center and The Urgent Care Unit; Columbia  Presbyterian’s Children’s Psychiatric floor, The Bond Market Association rotating exhibitions of art, New York, NY; HELP USA, open call for Artists in Newark, NJ, and the collection of art for McKinsey & Co., Inc. and Covingtion & Burling, New York, NY. As a professional artist, Barbara J.  Sussman's paintings are represented by the Newman Galleries in Philadelphia and was represented at Midtown Payson Gallery and Susan Blanchard Gallery of New York, NY. She has shown her work internationally in Zurich, Japan, France, Scotland and throughout the USA. She is listed in Who's Who Among Professional American Women, Who's Who of American Artists and in the 2002 edition of American Painters, Sculptors & Engravers in the US.



Joanna Dickey has served as Art Administrator for Blue Hill Art & Cultural Center since 2007.  She holds a Bachelor's degree in Fine Art, with concentrations in printmaking and acrylic painting. After college she apprenticed with a master painter for four years, where she collaborated on murals, decorative painting, and fine art.  Her artwork has been exhibited in galleries in NYC and the Lower Hudson Valley.  Since 2003, Joanna has served as Co-Director and Lead Artist/Educator at Strawtown Art & Garden Studio, where she co-develops and leads arts-based environmental education programs and citizen science advocacy projects for youth and community members. In 2009 Joanna received the "40 Under 40" Award from the Rockland Economic Development Corporation for her leadership work in the community.  In 2010, Joanna co-founded and served as Secretary of the Sparkill Creek Watershed Alliance, a community action group committed to developing partnerships and practices for restoring and preserving the health of the Sparkill Creek.


about BLue Hill Art & Cultural Center

The Blue Hill Art & Cultural Center has been the site for major exhibitions of Fine Art since 1984.  It remains the prime exhibition space in Rockland County for American and international artists of outstanding achievement and reputation whose work is suited for public space.  


Blue Hill Plaza is a beautifully landscaped corporate center in Pearl River, NY where a pond and an atrium unite two contemporary buildings that house Rockland's prime businesses.


The fine art exhibitions extend from the upper and lower lobbies of building 1 through the concourse, atrium, cafeteria, and through the lower and upper lobbies of building 2.





Emily Sussman Co-Curator 

An accomplished Fine Art Appraiser with notable qualifications. As an associate candidate of the Appraisers Association of America (AAA), she has demonstrated her proficiency by completing her Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) exam as set by Congress. Emily completed her appraisal studies through the Appraisal Institute of America and is USPAP compliant as of 6/23/2021. 

Currently, she works for Fog Hill and Co. as a Fine Art Appraiser. Additionally, she serves as Co-Curator for Blue Hill Art and Cultural Center, where she co-curates and manages their seasonal exhibitions. Emily completed her formal Art Education from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn NY, earning a bachelor’s degree in fine art in 2008.

During her career, she has worked as an artist assistant, at a high-level decorative painting company, commissioned studio artist, and as an apprentice Luthier at Fodera Guitars. Emily evolved her skills throughout her 8 years at Fodera Guitars, she emerged to be one of the top Luthiers and Inlay Artists at the Company. Emily also briefly shared her knowledge with young artists as she taught at Hoosac School, a notable boarding school in upstate New York. Emily is a well-rounded professional who is working to promote the appreciation of art through Blue Hill Art and Cultural Center and provide her skills and knowledge in fine art to Fog Hill and Co.