Susy is a
Peruvian artist, born in the lively and colourful artist district of Miraflores
in Lima; she grew up surrounded by art, living in the same streets as the art
cafés, studios and galleries. Her neighbour growing up was Felix Oliva, one of
South America’s best-known artists. She has a Japanese Grandfather and some of her
work today is influenced by her part-Japanese origin. Although there are common
themes throughout her work, cultural diversity is important to her and a major
influence in her life and work. Life is to be enjoyed and every corner of the
world is to be discovered. This shows in Susy’s work. Susy paints what she
feels. The results are works full of vibrancy and colour, life and energy.
Following a
brief stay in Europe, today Susy lives in Mauritius and she paints from her
studio. At one point she lived by the ocean and the window of her studio looked
out over the sea. This inspiration is apparent in many of her Mauritian works.
Although Susy has a wonderful talent for ceramic sculptures, oil and acrylic
painting is her preferred medium at present. Her style is her own; she paints
what she feels and is often inspired by an immediate experience – a remembered
poem such as Cesar Vallejo’s Masa, a photograph of the poppy fields of world
War One, music she has heard, or the sensation of ever changing light over a
vast ocean. Above all her inspiration comes from within, her own emotions at a
particular time. To Susy a painting is a way to communicate her emotions and
feelings. The canvas is her manuscript and the painting itself will tell her
when it is finished. When she sees what she felt, the work is done. The house
might fall down around her but she will not stop until it is finished.
Colour is
often the starting point of a piece and the composition then expands and
coalesces as Susy plays with volume, line, textures and layers, colour and
balance. She applies the paint with whatever she has to hand: her fingers,
brushes, kitchen utensils, paper. Her preferred medium at present is oil, with
its rich texture and wonderful grace and versatility but in a humid climate she
has adapted to using quicker drying acrylics. The strong, sharp, staccato lines
she can make with acrylic work particularly well for her Japanese influenced
paintings.
Gold, silver
and bronze leaf feature in many of her works and lend a strong geometric
element; a bold bar that divides the canvas, a steadying square or rectangle to
give balance to a composition. The metal leaf is generally the first element
she applies to the canvas and the rest of the composition she has in mind grows
around it.
Susy’s paintings are in private and corporate
collections in Mauritius, Canada, UK, Zimbabwe, South Africa, India, Dubai,
Spain, Germany, France, Luxembourg, United States, Argentina, Australia, Czech
Republic, Malaysia, Switzerland and Peru. As she has moved away from Peru to
Mauritius via Europe her painting
has always been her companion, an escape from the outside world; it’s her way
of feeling alive and expressing herself. She is there in each of her works,
sharing her life and feelings, being alive
