Billie Ruth Sudduth entered the eternal Peace of her Lord on October 12, 2021.
Billie Ruth was born on September 13, 1945 in Sewanee, Tennessee and grew up in Birmingham, Alabama.
Her parents were James Gilbert and Hazel E. Stewart.
Upon graduation from Shades Valley High School, Homewood, Alabama, she earned a B.A. in Psychology/Sociology; Huntingdon College; Montgomery, Alabama,1967, an M.S.W. University of Alabama; Tuscaloosa, Alabama,1969, with additional graduate studies in psychology, education, special education, learning disabilities, and language; East Carolina University, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Fresno Pacific College; 1975-1988.
As a Craven County Schools psychologist, in 1983, after a particularly demanding year, her boss suggested she do something for “fun” over the summer, knowing of Billie Ruth’s love of baskets, suggesting she take a basket making class at Craven Community College. After fifteen minutes in that class, she knew she had found her life’s work, later describing it as an “epiphany”. The early years were demanding as she maintained her professional career, was a wife and mother of two sons, (which included soccer, cub scouts, children’s theater, baseball and such.) Sixteen hour plus workdays became the norm and cooking and housework became extinct, indeed arts lost in favor of a new art form. Years later she became the grandmother of nine.
As a basketmaker, she considered herself primarily self-taught, stating,” I do not separate myself from nature but through my weaving, affirm being a part of it.” While a graduate student in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1967, she met her husband, Doug, marrying in December, 1968 with sons, Mark, born in 1970 (Durham, N.C.) and Chris in 1974 (New Bern, N.C.) In 1989, Billie Ruth left her career to pursue basketry full time.
As a high school and college student, she hated math. However, she met Fibonacci, a thirteenth century mathematician, as she developed and taught a “Math in a Basket” class in a middle school. Incorporating Fibonacci numbers and the Nature Sequence in all her baskets created a style that was immediately identifiable and captured the attention of museum curators and collectors alike. She describes her baskets as being made to hold your interest, not your objects.
In her own words, “I think that my legacy is that I opened a new world for basket-makers by getting baskets off the floor and onto pedestals as art objects people want to collect like they collect glass and pottery, and that baskets are now seen in an entirely different light.” She and Doug were on the road for 25 years as she exhibited and sold her baskets at craft shows. Her baskets are in the collections of the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution, the Museum of Art and Design in New York, Charles A Wustum Museum of Fine Art in Racine, Wisconsin, the Mint Museum of Craft and Design in Charlotte, the Asheville Art Museum in North Carolina, and the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts in Alabama. Her highest honor came in 1997 when she was named a Living Treasure by the State of North Carolina, In 2008 she was awarded the Order of the Long Leaf Pine. She was selected to exhibit at the prestigious Smithsonian Craft Show for thirteen years.
Her extensive basket teaching experience included Penland School of Crafts, John C. Campbell Folk school, and Arrowmont, as well as conducting numerous workshops throughout the country.
She deeply loved her family, was devoted to her church, loyal to her friends and never met a stranger, known for her accepting manner, honest sense of humor and excitement about life and people. She was the family “green thumb” and a devoted dog lover for her whole life.
Billie Ruth joins in God’s everlasting kingdom, her parents, Gilbert and Hazel, brother Pete, and her beloved mother-in-law, Thelma.
She is survived by her husband, Doug; her sisters, Anne and Linda; brother, Mike; her sons, Mark (Rebecca) of Wilmington, N.C. and Chris (Helen) of London, UK; and grandchildren in Wilmington, Nathan, Cohl, Mallory, Noah, Braelyn, Josh and Daphne; and in London, William and Holly.
A memorial service to celebrate and honor Billie Ruth’s life will be held at Christ Episcopal Church, New Bern, North Carolina, on Monday, October 25 at 1:00 p.m.
Cotten Funeral Home of New Bern, NC is honored to serve the family and friends of Billie Ruth Sudduth
