Suzanne COOPER MORRIS
Suzanne Cooper Morris would rather be drug through barbed wire to the dentist than to write about herself, especially in third person. But Lee Ann asked nicely, so she'll try. It's extremely difficult to me (forget third person - this will be an autobiography.) to write about myself because so many items listed in an Artist statement or bio seem unimportant yet exaggerated. What would matter to strangers about me? I'm Southern -- from Mobile, Alabama but call Atlanta, Georgia home - but no "Southern Belle." That's not to say that manners are not important, but I don't subscribe to tradition.
You may like to know that I have a degree in Art History and Fine Art, which makes me an educated critic who knows a thing or two about different mediums and styles. But I earn a living building props for theatre. Fun work. Very nice to have a job in the Arts, but I'm on a never ending quest to put a finger on what I want to be when I grow up. I have a wonderfully brilliant, funny, and talented and kind husband who I adore and two engagingly witty and beautifully genius daughters who make the world more tolerable for me and anyone they meet.
But back to me: So often Art is about "me, me, Me!" and mine is no different on some level. I make Art to satisfy something within myself that needs satisfying. I certainly don't do it for money. However, it'd be nice to make enough to support my habit.
But after a piece is created, it's no longer about me. I love to hear others' interpretations of my abrtract work. (Unless it's "my kid could paint that." If so, please allow me to talk to your kid. Their intelligence far supercedes yours. They're obviously adopted.)
After a piece is finished, a viewer brings as much as the Artist to the story. Unlike what must be filled in on a test, there are truly no wrong answers. I love this about Art. Here, I use the word "Art" to encompass all forms of Art. Visual, Literary, Musical, etc.
United States