Susan Jamison "Lovelace" 2007
Susan Jamison is one of my all-time favorite artists. She creates masterpieces that are unapologetically beautiful, dangerous, and feminine, and when I look at them, something within me feels as though it is unlocking. Her work has also become personally totemic for me, as I used one of her paintings as the image for "Fata Morgana: The New Female Fantasists," the first art show I ever curated. Quite simply, her paintings bring me luck, and they make me feel more magical by looking at them.
You can imagine how honored I was then to be asked to write a catalog essay for her new exhibition, "Super Natural," which opens tomorrow at The Longwood Center for the Visual Arts at Longwood University in Farmville, VA. This show looks to be an astounding culmination of a lifetime of using artwork to conjure, connect, and tell wild, wondrous tales. More info:
Super Natural: Susan Jamison is a site-specific installation that speaks to the universal act and nature of instinctive personal rituals, and references sources as varied as nature guides, fairy tales and myths. In addition to the egg tempera works for which she is primarily known, Jamison’s Super Natural is rendered in natural, organic materials including silk, earth and powdered milk. The artist will also lead a master class at Longwood this fall. On view September 24, 2016 – January 8, 2017. Opening reception on September 23, 5-8 pm.
The exhibition will include several of her paintings, in addition to a ghostly, ritualized installation. Wish I could see it in person, but my spirit is definitely entering her magic circle and cheering her on! Be there if you can be.
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