Oasis Painting

I am a Toronto artist-painter and member of the Akin Collective. My studio is located in the Bloordale Village area of the city. I have an Honours Degree in Fine Art. My studies included art & architecture balanced with studio work focusing on life drawing, painting and printmaking. My greatest influences come from the New York School of painters in the 1950's such as Helen Frankenthaler, Hans Hoffman, William de Kooning and Mark Rothko. I paint on canvas and paper using acrylic paint and mediums. I prefer acrylic paint because of the diverse selection of mediums that can be added to them. The versatility is fantastic and the process is safe. My paintings are primarily abstract and non objective, however the work is inspired by details found in architectural elements in modern and ancient urban landscapes (most often in the formations of rock and stone surfaces). I travel and visit ancient and modern "meeting places" where I photograph or sketch naturally formed designs found in the stone floors and walls. What intrigues me is not just the beautiful natural designs, but the changes in the role of the these places with the passage of time. I then reinterpret the designs as drawings on canvas using them as a "roadmap" to start the painting. I give an example of this process on my website www.suzannedennis.ca Finished paintings are non objective, but inspired by real artifacts. Ironically much of my work is quite colourful even when inspired by monochromatic elements. My second favourite inspiration is the cosmos and the stunning images that have been made over the past few decades. I love the study of history from the point of view of the artist and architect, and feel that in my own way I am part of this continuum.