Punished Artwork

Susan Carnahan is a NYC based photographer, video artist, burgeoning ceramicist, wife and mother of three. Originally from Dallas, Texas, she completed her undergraduate degree from the University or North Texas in 1992. She then moved to upstate New York, earning her MFA in photography from Syracuse University. She has exhibited in New York, Brooklyn,Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, Texas, Argentina, Australia, Dubai, UK, Finland, Italy, Thailand. Statement Much of my work originates from probing my past in order to assess my present identity. I was an only child, and the solitude caused me to construct fantastical narratives in my mind. Now, as an adult and an artist, I am reinventing the dark and fantastical actions that I would never dare act out as a child. In many of my works, I depict characters who are longing for sexual and psychological interaction, but various barriers prevent them from engaging with one another. They remain perpetually isolated, vulnerable, longing for connection. Their elusive search, in fact, mirrors my own. In my work, I have also explored the nature of relationships and the perpetual shifting dynamics between people and their various roles. I am fascinated by how these roles inform each other and how they are never static in nature, but rather constantly subject to change as they evolve. As an artist, I have examined roles and ideas from the perspective of a child. Now, as a parent, I am able to see myself in the role of my own mother, gaining a better understanding of how these cycles come together, full circle.