The World Today

This body of work deals with a contrarian existence that appears as our current era. Suzanne paints her experience, navigating a surreal state of being in the overlapping worlds of interior / exterior, superficial / profound, pop culture / high culture, connectedness / isolation .

Lady Liberty Awakens

I imagined This Young woman as the personification of the statue of Liberty. The arm that typically holds the torch has now lowered, it is well past daybreak, skies are blue, doves of peace are flying … and yet… is the flag raising or is it lowering to half mast? Rather than confidently lighting the way, Lady Liberty becomes an observer questioning an uncertain future.

Is it safe now?

The painting “Is it safe now ? “ speaks to this recent time that we are living in and many have perished from. Pandemics, politics, peaceful protests and many incidents of violence, I am not alone feeling the world spinning beneath my feet. This modern world is in a catastrophic unbalance. Are we to hide beneath a cloak of warmth and comfort until the world embraces a supportive and loving existance amongst our fellow human beings? I have painted the twisted knots of saffron fibers, symbolic of the complexities of life. Like Margret, we are entwined in this capsule of earthen shadow of doubts awaiting a hoped for luminosity of future. Will it be soon enough?

“We embrace a temporary state of vulnerability, lifting the fabric of our own perceived limitations. Stepping out in the truth of inner strength, revealing ourselves through our courageously lived stories ”, Suzanne Johnson

Cycle of Ancestry

She is honoring her cultural History, while also trying to break free of expectations placed upon her. Chrysanthemums have traditionally represented longevity. Seven blooms of togetherness are shown but hidden is another Bloom bringing the count to eight flowers of Prosperity. She is crowned by an unfinished Motif, with repetition of design expected but the future is not yet chosen.