Susan Fenton: Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania
"My subject matter is directly linked to the cultural
or environmental influences of a particular time or place in my life. I work within a
staged, shallow space using the figure as the human element while props provide
allegorical reference. The resulting images are singular narratives in which the model
represents an anonymous persona that is as much about my inner self as an other
influences."
"From 1991 to 1994, I lived in Tokyo while teaching for Temple University Japan. While in Tokyo, I was struck by the strange and wonderful mix of compatible contradictions inherent in Japan and its customs. With this contradiction in mind, I began to assemble a series of visual metaphors to address the strength of the Japanese people, as well as the ritualistic iconography of their culture."
"In my subsequent work, I have rebelled against the severe minimalisim of the Japanese work, and pay homage to Euro/American culture. The composition is reminiscent of the standard Victorian portrait, but its content deals with concealed societal unrest of that era. My most recent and current work offers no particular narrative other than the interaction of a given set of visual characters. Just as modernism followed the Victorian age, I now feel a need to work with the simplicity of clean lines, geometric forms and a more neutral palette."