Susan Stillman/Artist Statement
The landscape I see every day shapes my work in paint. It's a foundation from which to explore the relationships of the natural to the man-made. The views from my windows high on the hill, and my daily walks in all seasons feed my preoccupation with light and the way it effects change in color and tonalities.
Series have evolved as I revisit images that have left an impression in my memory. The scale of the work has an impact on how the images are perceived, as larger paintings invite the viewer to enter the space created, and smaller scale work feels fragmentary, echoing my experiences of moving through the landscape and noticing flashes of color on the periphery.
An absence of the figure is deliberate, disallowing any imposition of ‘story’ and leaving the focus entirely on the moment captured and it’s specific qualities of light, color and tonal saturation. Intensity in the chromatic range brings to mind the hours when the sun is lowest in the sky. The simplicity of the subject is transformed by the moment of illumination and by our unexpected attention.