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Artist Statement for Susi Franco
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Although I have been involved in the arts in some capacity most of my life, primarily music and writing, I have painted only since my twenties. It was a passion I was able to indulge only once a year or so, related to the responsibilities of rearing six children alone and working as an Registered Nurse to support them.
Nearly six years ago, my entire life was catapulted from its’ usual path by a severe back injury which left me totally disabled , unable to work. Overnight, everything I believed in was drastically altered; it seemed my life was stuck in re-wind. The rigors of constant pain and lost independence pushed me into an abyss of depression I was uncertain I had the strength to combat and survive.
My sister remembered I had always loved to dabble in paint, started sending me student-grade art supplies and subscriptions to various artists' journals to occupy me. It worked. The very first time I put brush to paper, several hours flew by and I realized how diminished my awareness of pain was. I started to study the journals voraciously, painted daily and totally immersed myself in the study and practice of art. I remembered what it meant to create.
I realized I had to make a decision whether to live or die, and I am not ashamed to say Art saved my life, provided me a desperately needed focus that took me outside myself, made me see my world from a different perspective.
What started out as pain-relief blossomed into first a passion and now a way of life, a new career. Art returned to me the desire to live and thrive and create, equipped me with the tools necessary to survive.
As you look at my work you are seeing my physical pain, only transmogrified into another form, just as ice assumes another form as it melts into water. Art is my vehicle for discharging the negativity of suffering; I believe it can do that for not only the artist, but the viewer as well. My preferred medium is oil ; people are often surprised to learn I use Old Master classic techniques ( underpainting , toning a canvas, grisaille, bistre, etc) to create highly contemporary works. Additionally, I have limited premier commissions available for portraits and paintings of homes, vacation spots etc ; email me for details and examples. These commissions are very different from my portfolio work, are much more representational and based on photos you supply, which are returned to you unharmed.
Although the three dimensional qualities of oils consistently astounds & delights me, I find excitement in the potential of any creative medium and am always experimenting, learning, attempting, evolving. I feel it is my sacred obligation to use art to say something of import whenever possible, be it the ecology of our earth or the ecology of human beings among one another. I enjoy creating pretty pictures, but now and then the artist has the responsibility of communication with their work; I endeavor to do that with integrity and love .
Thank you for your support of living artists, and I leave you with the words of Pablo Picasso:
"Art washes away the dust of everyday living'....
I can tell you with authority, Pablo was right.
Warmly:
Susi Franco
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