Susanne was born in Galveston, Texas, July 6, 1941, to Norma Gertrude Gundermann Bray and Ralph Garrett Bray. She had two older sisters, Woodra Bray and Norma Lee Jones. World War II had not yet begun, but it soon enveloped her world. Her father died before she was four years old, then the Texas City Explosion of 1947 struck. The family survived and thrived afterwards in Texas City, where Susanne studied, learned and graduated from Texas City High School in 1959. She attended the University of Texas in the fall of 1959 and studied fine arts with a particular interest in oil painting. She excelled in art as she did in most things she attempted.
Susanne left Austin for the dynamic city of Houston and enrolled at the University of Houston to continue her art studies in 1961. Immediately Susanne won recognition; her work earned first prize awards two consecutive years at juried competitions. Susanne met the love of her life at the University of Houston and they married August 17, 1963, shortly after she graduated. She worked as a fashion illustrator for Sakowitz and taught art at Johnston Elementary. Susanne worked with her husband’s family-owned Cellar Door restaurants, taught art at St. Thomas’ Episcopal School and attended graduate school at the University of Houston while raising four children.
The first semester of graduate school at the University of Houston in 1980, marked a turning point in Susanne's art career when her large painting of cattle, "Reflections of 135 Years,” drew attention from directors of Houston's three major museums: The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; The Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston; and The Institute of the Arts, Rice University. Susanne had many exhibitions: The Chicago Institute of the Arts, Houston Area Exhibition, The Alumni Exhibition at Blaffer Gallery, Meredith Long and Company, Houston, Art Associates Gallery, Lake Charles, Henning Cultural Center, Sulphur, McNeese State University, Lake Charles, 1911 State Historical Center, Lake Charles, Gallery 219, Chicago, IL, Tubac, AZ.
Susanne described her art journey, “ When my husband decided to open his own restaurant, paint brushes were exchanged temporarily for knives and forks.” Her sense of humor was quick-witted and memorable. Charles and Susanne worked hard at their restaurants, Lavaca Bay and Cafe Ba Bahia, along with all the children and family. She worked at Park Plaza Hospital, Fidelity Arts and as a professor at Houston Community College - she was busy. In 1995, when Susanne moved to the family Farm in Sulphur. Susanne worked at McNeese in the communications and art departments.
Susanne said returning to Louisiana roots expanded her artistic vision. Her love of the land is evident in her art. “We have cattle operations in Texas and southwest Louisiana. My paintings respond to the countryside, the bayous, marshes and coastal prairies - capturing their essence in vibrant colors and harmony of stroke. My landscapes interpret the forms and forces of the natural world: fluid shapes of a plowed field, grasses bent by the wind.” Vincent could make the ordinary things of life very beautiful. She said,” I present the ordinary in an unusual way.”
“As I watched the lush green fields being harvested into large rolls of hay for cattle feed during the dormant winter months, I realized this function embodies a continuum of life for both man and animal.” Susanne was a Christian and believed in the continuum of life that Christ offers. "Spiritual Pathway exemplifies this delicate balance that exists in nature,” she said. Susanne survived three more hurricanes and became as resilient as the land around her. She titled her painting and an exhibit “Survivors” to honor the people and animals of Southwest Louisiana. Susanne was proud to paint Joie De Vivre, the mural which hangs in the Lake Charles Civic Center.
Susanne played the piano beautifully - I Dreamed, La Vie En Rose and I’ll See You Again, were some of her favorites. She cooked and entertained making every holiday a joyous occasion. She endured a snakebite by a water moccasin on her wedding anniversary. She loved the beach and the ocean winds, even though those winds destroyed her home during Hurricanes Rita, Ike, Laura and Delta.
Susanne loved life, music, art, traveling and her friends, but her greatest love was her family, Husband, Charles William Vincent, Children: Catherine Vincent McIntyre and husband, John T. McIntyre, Charles William Vincent II and wife, Kathryn T. Vincent, Garrett Bray Vincent and wife, Gindi E. Vincent, Candace Vincent Perez and husband, Leo P. Perez. Grandchildren: Findley McIntyre Wallace, Laurel Bray McIntyre, Susanna McIntyre Morris, Ana Sofia Perez, Lucas Martin Perez, Cristian Mateo Perez, Peyton Jane Vincent, Rachel Jennings Vincent, William Bray Vincent, Samuel Garrett Vincent and Lillian Penn Vincent. Great Grandchildren: Eleanor Grace Scribner and William Frank Wallace V.
Special thanks to the loving caregivers: Cathy McClure, Debbie Potts, Kim Homsi and Annie Homsi.
Her funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, May 1, at Henning Memorial United Methodist Church in Sulphur. Pastor Jo Cooper will officiate. Burial will be in Mimosa Pines Cemetery South in Carlyss under the direction of Hixson-Sulphur Memorial Funeral Home. Pallbearers will be Sam Vincent, Will Vincent, Mateo Perez, Lucas Perez, Possum Clement and John Wayne Carte. Visitation will be held at the funeral home on Thursday, April 30 from 5-7 p.m. and will resume at 10 a.m. until the time of service Friday in the church. The family asks that memorial donations be made to Henning Memorial United Methodist Church, 404 S. Huntington St, Sulphur, LA 70663 or to the West Calcasieu Cameron Hospital, 701 Cypress St, Sulphur, LA 70663. Words of comfort may be shared with the family at www.hixsonfuneralhomes.com.
