Susan E. Stanger
ARTIST STATEMENT
I am delighted by landscapes, architectural structures, shapes, cartoons, and stylized designs, and I strive to capture how I perceive the world rather than how it appears on the surface. In that vein, I employ patterns, colors, and textures, using fabric, beads, embroidery, felting, and thread as vehicles to illustrate my experiences. The tactile properties of fiber enable me to use my hands to create expressions of joy, sorrow, anger, wonder, and humor (not necessarily in that order).
ARTIST BIO
My grandmother was a painter who started the Cheltenham Art Center in PA and my mother is a metalsmith, quilter and painter as well. As a child in NJ, I delighted in crafts and art at home (drawing, painting, batik, clay, embroidery, soldering, enamels/cloisonne) and was frequently exposed to myriad works in NYC museums and galleries. The 1974 Levi’s Denim Art show, in particular, inspired many complex embroidered pieces in my youth.
My recent return to fiber was instigated by the rediscovery of a satirical “Miss America” doll I created in Junior High. From there, I’ve been immersed in felting, block printing and my old love, embroidery, more recently combining those techniques within my paintings. Most days, I work out of my studio in the ICB Building in Sausalito, which houses over 100 artist spaces
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Graham Life is so precious. Through my art, I hope to convey my deep appreciation for the “life force” and I invite the viewer to share in the wonder I experience as an artist and protector of life in all forms. That “quickening,” that “life force” is a constant energy that surges through my veins and sparks my creativity. I am a creative; an artist, a dancer, a mother. I make art because I must. An interesting concept, an unusual form, or a sudden vision can steal me from my duties or awaken me from my dreams. My interests in preserving the environment and promoting social justice frequently drive the message of my artwork. My pieces often begin with a visceral response to an act of injustice or the destruction of our natural world and explode into social commentary. In the mid 1980’s, I passionately explored the ancient Japanese tradition of handmade paper. I was attracted to the use of natural fibers, water, and elements that promote fibrous interaction to ultimately produce a thing of beauty. Ten years later, I embraced the challenge of creating beauty and complexity from other materials that were raw and simple. This inspired me to explore a variety of media from transformed fabric and knotless netting, to repurposed, reclaimed, and reimagined materials. Then in 2009, life changes propelled me to become passionate about felting wool. As in making paper, felting wool transforms natural fibers through the use of water and fibrous interaction. By employing wet and dry techniques, laminating gauzy silks to the wool fibers, inlaying embellishments, and blending colored fleece, I create painterly fabrics, unique wall art, and exciting three-dimensional forms. As an Obstetrical nurse for four decades, I was entrusted with guiding women in the most awe-inspiring form of creation. Similar to assisiting the labor process, felting requires strength, calculation, patience, and a sensitive connection to the subtle transformation of the material. The fact that I am passionately attracted to the tactile, rhythmic, spiritual, water-dependent nature of my professions as a nurse and as an artist does not escape me.
