Dr Lady Susan Conway is an anthropologist, artist, and author of many books about the art, material culture and history of Thailand and Burma (Myanmar). She exhibits her paintings in the UK and overseas, inspired by Buddhist art and tropical landscapes.  

Susan grew up in Hampshire and attended a convent school. After graduating she taught in Borneo on the edge of a primary forest. Some children arrived at school on water buffalo, tethered in the school’s sports field. Others came by dugout canoe. That experience led her to fall in love with Southeast Asia.  

Her career as an author began in 1990 with the publication of Thai Textiles by British Museum Press. In the 1980s she carried out field work in the villages and towns of Thailand to discover the role of women in local society. Women and girls produced woven textiles that she argued in the book were not merely a commodity but a symbol of Thai society with its well-balanced rhythms of social and religious custom.  

She has travelled in Thailand and Burma to produce illustrated books on Southeast Asian art and material culture. In 2019 she taught in a Buddhist university housed in a monastery up in the hills behind Taunggyi, capital of Shan State, Burma. The political situation put an end to that project. 

Susan and her husband chose Lancing for their twin daughters because they wanted them to receive a broad education. They were impressed with the school’s curriculum in the arts and sciences, the quality of music and drama and the international work in Africa and the local Outreach programme. There were some impressive alumni too.  

Susan has relished her involvement with the Lancing community as a parent, governor and  Foundation Council member. She is currently writing a book on The History of Women at Lancing, for publication in 2024.