Suzanne Olmsted

Suzanne Marie Olmsted
Apr 15, 1956 - Nov 21, 2021
Suzanne Olmsted was an artist and educator, and the mother of Gerald Gillum and James Gillum. She passed away suddenly in her home, beside her friend, on November 21.

Suzanne was born April 15, 1956 in Palo Alto, CA to Barney and Gerald Olmsted. She was the middle of three children, alongside brothers Daniel and Richard. She grew up in a close knit family and had many talents: seamstress, crafter, photographer, skier, cyclist, to name a few. While growing up in Palo Alto, the family spent a lot of time at their cabin on the Yuba River in the Sierras, a spot that remained close to her heart throughout her life.

Suz had a large circle of friends at Cubberley High School, and it's where she first learned woodworking, building her family's kitchen table, still in use today. The family moved to Berkeley her senior year, and she graduated from Berkeley High in 1974. She attended UC Santa Cruz, starting her long career as an an artist and print maker.

At Santa Cruz, she met sculptor Ed Gillum and they married in 1982. Suzie and Ed moved to Carbondale IL, where she earned her M.F.A. in Art at Southern Illinois University, later moving to Billings MT, Reno NV and Phoenix AZ. In 1989 she gave birth to her son Gerald, and in 1992, to his younger brother James. The couple later divorced and she brought her boys back to Oakland, where they grew up.

All the while, she maintained her practice as a visual artist and teacher. In 1996 she joined the faculty at the San Francisco Art Institute becoming Associate Professor, where she taught print making, photography, and foundation courses, serving as chair of the Print Department from 1999-2005. She enjoyed artist residencies in Belgium, Italy and Vermont and consistently exhibited her work.

She reconnected with her high school friend, Melissa Mills, and they sparked a romance. Suz and Melissa travelled to Italy, riding Vespas along the Amalfi Coast, and they shared many family milestones until Melissa's untimely death in 2006.

An injury Suzie suffered long ago led to years of health issues, including debilitating pain that slowed her down, but never stoped her creative work. Though she struggled for many years to properly diagnose and treat her condition, she made strong progress towards a long sought after, but elusive, health.

Her two boys grew up and thrived, and that remained her proudest achievement. James manages a restaurant in New Orleans, where he lives with his partner, Maggie. Gerald grew to international prominence as the rapper G-Eazy, and Suzie cherished her role as "G-Eazy's Mom" occasionally appearing with him on stage and most recently when Gerald live face-timed her to the crowd at Napa's Bottlerock Festival this past August.

After moving to New Orleans for a few years to be close to her son, she moved back to Oakland, and settled into a home she truly loved, that had studio space and room for her sons to visit, and became a valued member of a welcoming neighborhood.

Suzanne is survived by her sons Gerald and James (Maggie), brothers Daniel (Kathy) and Richard (Evelyn), niece Madeline, and by her mother Barney, with whom she had recently celebrated her mother's 90th birthday. Her father passed away in 2012. Suzanne was loved and admired by her close extended family, former students, and her many friends from around the country.