Suzanna Bryan
Black Derby Pink Web
Suzanna Bryan
Artist statement: I begin working with an open mind without any preconceived ideas. I work on four and five paintings or drawings at a time, most often on paper with an acrylic base painting which is usually all but obliterated by the end. If an image, a figure, or an environment suggests itself, I try to enhance it in some way—either by adding collage materials, oil pastels, gouache, or even covering the entire surface with India ink. Then I see what that suggests. By the end, there are several layers of images and materials. The resulting paintings or drawings have been sometimes described as figures dancing in a dreamscape. Just as only the strongest images remain in your conscious mind when you awake from a meaningful dream, my paintings reflect those images or figures that are powerful enough to make it through the layers. Some survive, others do not. Some that I love I lose along the way, and some I'd rather not see ever again keep re-emerging. In order to survive, an image or figure must move through the different layers to the final surface of the painting. I've found that my paintings are more successful when I do not try to consciously control the movement.Bio: Suzanna Bryan grew up by the Atlantic Ocean in Myrtle Beach, S.C.. She attended public schools and completed her liberal arts education in the early 70's at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. Later, Suzanna took dance courses at UNC, Greenville and in Washington, D.C. and became a performing artist and teacher. She was a member of Beth Burkhardt's Dance Improvisation Group, worked with senior citizens,and taught improvisational movement at the Amazing Life Games School in Washington, D.C.. In 1982, tiring of city life, Suzanna moved to the Virginia countryside, Star Tannery where her interests shifted to the visual arts. Painting and drawing became the major focus of her artistic energies. Although Suzanna attended classes during the 1980's at the Art Students League in New York in woodcarving and life-drawing, she is largely self-taught. Her work is in numerous private collections. Suzanna lives with her son Finn, in the country south of Charlottesville, Va.
suzannabryan.com