Suzanne
Klassen
I am a Vancouver-based artist working primarily in painting and drawing with occasional extensions into media and object-based work.
Here's one of the main struggles that plays out in my work: the pull of the "nicely rendered" (and all that is associated with what that means) vs. the capacity of the hand and the materials to transform, question, challenge and confront that niceness. I am definitely team anti-niceness.
I see the value of chaos, interference, distraction, and backing myself into a corner. These energies can lead to something interesting, the marks left behind can animate a subject far beyond its own capacity.
Sometimes my work gets called cinematic, and besides the reference to framing choices, I wonder if all the plot twists left visible in the work itself contribute to that effect. I do like an unresolved story arc.
I graduated from Emily Carr University of Art and Design in 1986. Alongside my studio and exhibition practice, I had a long career in community service and engagement.
CV
Exhibitions & Festivals
2024- Electronic sound piece in group show SixbySix at THIS__Gallery, Vancouver BC
2017- Solo exhibition of paintings at Plaskett Gallery, New Westminster
2016- Anonymous Group Show North Van Community Arts Council
2012 - Vancouver Experimental Theremin Orchestra (various performances including Vivo, Science World, Macmillan Space Centre)
2008 - Choasync, interactive telephone performance
2007- RAV Line Dreams, live performance
2007 - Emily Carr Alumni Show, QE Theatre, light box
2006 - An Everyday Opera (performance)
2006 - World Urban Forum: Goodbye Carwash, Installation
Publications/Media
2017 - Lives of Women and Mothers Explored
2007 - Main Street: Discussions on Urban Culture
2006 - CBC Radio 3: Last Call (writing)
2006 - Vancouver Coop Radio Soundscapes (Live sound performance)
2006 - CBC Radio1: Nightshift (documentary)
2006 - CBC Radio 1 & 3: Chinita, Love in Transit (documentary)
2005 - Artella magazine: Theatre Memne (photo performance)
Education
2016 - Theatre for Living Level 1 & 2
2013-14 Dialogue and Civic Engagement- Simon Fraser University
1979 - 1986 Emily Carr University, UVic/UBC (BFA, Open Learning Institute)