|
|
Susan Hensel received her BFA from University of Michigan in 1972 with a double major in painting and sculpture and a concentration in ceramics. With a history, to date, of well over 200 exhibitions, 32 of them solo, twenty garnering awards, Hensel's desire to communicate ideas through art continues to be a powerful motivator. Hensel's artwork is collected nationwide, represented in collecting libraries and museums as disparate as MOMA and The Getty Research Institute with major holdings at Minnesota Center for Book Arts, University of Washington, Baylor University and University of Colorado at Boulder. Archives pertaining to her artists books are available for study at the University of Washington Libraries in Seattle. Hensel has been awarded multiple grants and residencies through the Jerome Foundation, Minnesota State Arts Board, and Ragdale Foundation. Hensel has curated over seventy exhibitions of artists from the United States and Canada.
Published on May 9th 2020. Artist responses collected in months previous.
What projects are you working on right now?
I am working on a project that is titled HYPERFOLD. It is dimensional computer aided embroidery. I digitize and produce stitched objects that can fold into either dimensional wall pieces or free-standing sculpture. They are stitched on polyester felt that can be at least semi-permanently folded. My goal is to develop architectural-scale artworks through modular means. It is an investigation of the medium and an expression of radical beauty. Meanwhile I am continuing to work on a series inspired by seeing Bridget Riley’s paintings in person for the first time. I am investigating the ability of stripes and color and display techniques to affect viewer reaction. Imagine: Hanging above eye level: a wide, grey horizon with rectangles of pale colorful stripes in regular sequence. They seem like they could go on forever. The stripes are not quite straight; there is a subtle curvature. One rectangle tips away from the horizontal movement, as if to escape. As I regard that renegade form, I feel as though I can breathe again. I am suddenly in a peaceful place. Everything in our culture tends toward hurry. This work is about slowing down.
How do you keep yourself accountable in your practice?
I usually have some kind of mission statement floating around the studio. It changes from life stage to life stage and I mostly ignore it! But the practice of developing it has always been an important touchstone. When the work seems like it may have taken a wrong turn, I can stop and consider if it supports the mission in any way. Currently the statement says that I intend to demonstrate a way of living whose goal is a sense of inner peace and that my artworks in some way are an outgrowth of that. I have concluded that if I take proper care of my inner life, my spiritual life, that the studio will likely take care of itself. So my accountability is to the care and feeding of my soul, so to speak, so I can pursue clean, clear artwork that may have a soothing effect on me and the viewer.
How do you stay motivated to pursue your creative work?
This is not too much of a problem for me. I keep a rigorous schedule. I know when I am due in the studio, 6 days a week. It’s a job, mostly a joy, and a calling. I can’t imagine being anywhere else for extended periods of time. My whole life is structured around the needs of the studio. I have dedicated space. I have ready materials. I use assistants from time to time. I mostly work alone, but I also have deep support. I have 2 critique groups whose art eyes I value and a more democratic coffee group of art hobbyists who support me. I am a member of a drawing co-op that meets once a week, keeping my eye honed. I also try to take total breaks one day per week. This keeps me fresh. I also spend 2 weeks a year by Lake Superior. It clears my head and helps me get out of my own way. And I keep a studio journal. This is a self-reflective journal and studio planner. It functions like a sketchbook and a pressure valve.
Where do you hope to be 10 years from now and what would you like to say to yourself?
First, I hope to be ALIVE! I hope to be represented by a vibrant commercial gallery…or two. I hope to have developed enough of a market to support the Artists Legacy Foundation I will have created for the disposition of my artwork upon my death. I also hope to be conversant and skilled in laser cutting and 3-D printing. I would say, regardless of outcomes, “Congrats on still being alive. Good job! You tried, with everything you had, and that is enough. Now, keep on truckin’.”
What projects are you working on right now?
I am working on a project that is titled HYPERFOLD. It is dimensional computer aided embroidery. I digitize and produce stitched objects that can fold into either dimensional wall pieces or free-standing sculpture. They are stitched on polyester felt that can be at least semi-permanently folded. My goal is to develop architectural-scale artworks through modular means. It is an investigation of the medium and an expression of radical beauty. Meanwhile I am continuing to work on a series inspired by seeing Bridget Riley’s paintings in person for the first time. I am investigating the ability of stripes and color and display techniques to affect viewer reaction. Imagine: Hanging above eye level: a wide, grey horizon with rectangles of pale colorful stripes in regular sequence. They seem like they could go on forever. The stripes are not quite straight; there is a subtle curvature. One rectangle tips away from the horizontal movement, as if to escape. As I regard that renegade form, I feel as though I can breathe again. I am suddenly in a peaceful place. Everything in our culture tends toward hurry. This work is about slowing down.
How do you keep yourself accountable in your practice?
I usually have some kind of mission statement floating around the studio. It changes from life stage to life stage and I mostly ignore it! But the practice of developing it has always been an important touchstone. When the work seems like it may have taken a wrong turn, I can stop and consider if it supports the mission in any way. Currently the statement says that I intend to demonstrate a way of living whose goal is a sense of inner peace and that my artworks in some way are an outgrowth of that. I have concluded that if I take proper care of my inner life, my spiritual life, that the studio will likely take care of itself. So my accountability is to the care and feeding of my soul, so to speak, so I can pursue clean, clear artwork that may have a soothing effect on me and the viewer.
How do you stay motivated to pursue your creative work?
This is not too much of a problem for me. I keep a rigorous schedule. I know when I am due in the studio, 6 days a week. It’s a job, mostly a joy, and a calling. I can’t imagine being anywhere else for extended periods of time. My whole life is structured around the needs of the studio. I have dedicated space. I have ready materials. I use assistants from time to time. I mostly work alone, but I also have deep support. I have 2 critique groups whose art eyes I value and a more democratic coffee group of art hobbyists who support me. I am a member of a drawing co-op that meets once a week, keeping my eye honed. I also try to take total breaks one day per week. This keeps me fresh. I also spend 2 weeks a year by Lake Superior. It clears my head and helps me get out of my own way. And I keep a studio journal. This is a self-reflective journal and studio planner. It functions like a sketchbook and a pressure valve.
Where do you hope to be 10 years from now and what would you like to say to yourself?
First, I hope to be ALIVE! I hope to be represented by a vibrant commercial gallery…or two. I hope to have developed enough of a market to support the Artists Legacy Foundation I will have created for the disposition of my artwork upon my death. I also hope to be conversant and skilled in laser cutting and 3-D printing. I would say, regardless of outcomes, “Congrats on still being alive. Good job! You tried, with everything you had, and that is enough. Now, keep on truckin’.”
Find Susan Hensel on Instagram
|
|
