Susan J Harris
Susan J Harris
Archdale, NC, United States
About Susan J Harris
Susan Harris is an abstract mixed media artist who works with deep colors and rich textures that capture the natural beauty of the world around her. She works layer by layer, building depth into the painting with natural fibers, papers, acrylic gels and found objects. The curing process takes time, and throughout each step she adds color, different hues that are washed, glazed, troweled or scumbled, building upon the layers that came before it. Each painting becomes a discovery, a story, and a study of the time it takes her to create it. A single piece can take weeks, months, or even years to complete, and her work is sought out by both personal collectors and public organizations that recognize the unique, intuitive, and introspective aspects of her art. Born in 1952 in Bristol, Virginia, Susan’s passion for art began at a young age. After moving to North Carolina in her early childhood, she studied under Francis Kendall, the late North Carolina artist, who instilled in Susan not only a love for many art forms, but a desire to experiment and the joy to be found in every part of the journey. Throughout high school and college, Susan expanded her studies in a variety of disciplines, including pottery, sculpture, and stained glass, all of which have influenced her use of color and texture. She married her husband, John, in 1975, and continued to create art in her spare time as they began raising their family. In 2004, after working in the corporate world, raising two children and caring for her aging parents, she returned to her lifelong love of art and her dream of painting full-time. It began as a way to explore and express the changes she experienced in her life, but her art soon began connecting with others going through similar experiences within themselves. Her early exhibits centered around themes of celebration and healing, and those themes continue to recur in her work to this day. Currently, she is active in the art world on both a local and national level. She has served as a juror for fine art exhibitions and she assists in overseeing a gallery of local artists in Greensboro, NC. Her work has been published internationally and her abstracts can be found in private and commercial installations throughout the US and Canada. She works out of her home studio in Randolph County, where she and her husband live on 64 acres of beautiful land, close to their two grown children. Susan says, "To me, art is an expression of the inner self. I paint what I feel in my heart and imagination, not what I see. This translates to a painting full of emotion and thought with an emphasis on quality and spontaneity. My abstracts are an exploration of identity, capturing mood and layers of emotions with an intentional purpose to evoke the viewer's own interpretation. In 2011, I noticed circles had found their way onto most of my canvases so I took an introspective look to analyze why they kept appearing. I concluded that painting from the heart does, indeed, have a tendency to reveal who I really am--as an individual and as an artist. For me, circles stand for commitment and promise. My paintings incorporate at least one circle, maybe more. They may be found in the painting itself or on an outer edge, pronounced or subtly embedded. I invite you to find my circles; they represent my commitment and promise to always paint with heartfelt emotion. . . . . . . . . . Please Note: Out of respect for my collectors and to assure they have purchased a one-of-a-kind, original abstract, I do not offer prints of my original paintings.
Education:
-Private Instruction/mentoring under the late North Carolina artist, Francis Kendall.(Whiteville, NC)
-Five years of academic art history and technique instruction in Jr. and Sr. High.(Radford, VA)
-College art courses and independent art studies in various media including stained glass window design and construction, pottery, and sculpture.(Greensboro, NC)
Events:
2017: April
INCOGNITO: A public arts initiative in aid of the Jack & Jill Children's Foundation.
Solomon Gallery, Dublin, Ireland
2011: October
HEALING ART
Art Acquisition Benefit for Cone Cancer Center
Greensboro, NC
2010: November
2ND ANNUAL PRE-HOLIDAY ART SHOW
Heart of Living Home Gallery
Greensboro, NC
2010: May
SPRING HOME SHOW
Heart of Living Home Gallery
Greensboro, NC
2009: December -- January 2010
SOLO EXHIBIT
Center Pointe Model Penthouse
Greensboro, NC
2009: October
FEATURED ARTIST
First Friday Downtown Art Tour
Gallery of Art at The Chamber
Greensboro, NC
2009: November
PRE-HOLIDAY ART SHOW
Heart of Living Home Gallery
Greensboro, NC
2008: February
8TH ANNUAL ART WITH HEART AUCTION at Centerstage
Charlotte, NC
2008: January
4TH ANNUAL ART WITH HEART EMERGING ARTIST SHOWCASE
Juried Competition
Charlotte, NC
2007: April
ARTIST OF THE MONTH
Juried Online Arts Festival
Exhibitions:
2017: May
SECOND SPRING ARTS EXHIBIT--MOVEMENT, THE MIND & MORE, Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts, Winston-Salem, NC
2016: July - August
2016 TONY SNOW 6TH ANNUAL EYE OF THE ARTIST JURIED EXHIBITION
Yadkin Cultural Arts Center
Yadkinville, NC
2016: April - May
SECOND SPRING ARTS 2016 EXHIBITION -
"THE POWER OF STORY"
Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts
Winston-Salem, NC
2014: Dec. - Feb. 2015
SOLO EXHIBIT: CHAPEL HILL PUBLIC ARTS
Chapel Hill Public Library
Chapel Hill, NC
2014: Sept. - Feb. 2015
STATE OF THE ART/ART OF THE STATE 2014
Cameron Art Museum
Wilmington, NC
2014: MAY
SECOND SPRING ARTS EXHIBIT AND COMPETITION
Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts
Winston-Salem, NC
2014: March
2014 SPRING ART SHOW
Franklin Square Gallery
Southport, NC
2012: August-December
"VIEWPOINTS" 2012 FALL ART SHOW
Davidson County Community College
Lexington, NC
2012: June-August
NEW ARTWORK EXHIBIT
Uptown Artworks Gallery
Greensboro, NC
2012: April
SACRED SPACE FOR THE CITY
Juried Art Exhibition
Greensboro, NC
2011: July -- September
EYE OF THE ARTIST
Juried Exhibit
Yadkin Cultural Arts Center
Yadkinville, NC
2011: May- October
STATE OF THE ART/ART OF THE STATE
Cameron Art Museum
Wilmington, NC
2011: January
UNDERGROUND ABSTRACTS
Gallery of the Arts
Winston-Salem, NC
2011: January
100 AND GROWING
Circa Gallery
Asheboro, NC
2010: September -- December
SOLO EXHIBIT
Center Pointe
Greensboro, NC
2010: June – Present
GALLERY OF ART at The Chamber
Greensboro, NC
2010: April
FOR EVERYTHING A SEASON
Southridge Gallery
Jamestown, NC
2010: April
A GREATER VISION FOR AUTISM
Mitchell & Bartlett
Greensboro, NC
2010: April
DIMENSIONS 2010
National Juried Exhibit
Associated Artists Gallery
Winston-Salem, NC
2010: January -- June
SOLO EXHIBIT
Center Pointe
Greensboro, NC
2009: November - January 2010
The Coffee Break
Greensboro, NC
2009: September -- January 2010
Group Exhibit at The Chamber
Greensboro, NC
2009: July -- August
WIDE OPEN
Group Exhibit
Associated Artists Gallery
Winston Salem, NC September
2007
6TH ANNUAL SCHWA SHOW
National Juried Exhibit
Emerge Gallery
Greenville, NC
2007: September -- October
MIRACLES: A CELEBRATION OF LIFE
The Upstairs Gallery
Greensboro, NC
2006: April -- May
THROUGH THE EYES OF LOVE
The Upstairs Gallery
Greensboro, NC,