East Gallery
Sue Clancy
Laughing Matters Too
September 22 thru November 16, 2008
Laughter is very important to Norman artist Sue Clancy. Her art is often inspired by books she reads, people she meets, things she sees, the fact that she is deaf and the words she ‘miss-hears’, puns, idioms, and other funny words or phrases.
“I’m fascinated by the relationship between words and images. Particularly I’m amused by how we use verbal and visual animal metaphors to communicate. I’m interested artistically in how animal characters and humor enable us to discuss complex concepts in ways that are both memorable and accessible by a variety of people. I’m using animals and humor in my artwork to create conceptual jokes which talk about aspects of being human.”
Her paintings are created by using cut pieces of handmade paper. “This technique is a physical manifestation of the way the human mind combines and compounds isolated patterns of information into a new conceptual whole. Each paper I find or create starts life as a single handmade sheet. I dye it with a color, stencil a pattern on it, marble it, or block print a design onto its surface, whatever is required to create the necessary patterns for my visual story. Then I cut shapes out of the separate sheets of paper and combine those cut shapes into new ones which are then glued onto a two inch deep cradled wood panel. This technique creates layers of pattern and shape.”
There are often several hundreds of cut handmade and patterned paper shapes in each of her paintings. Like elements within a joke, every pattern and shape she uses individually contributes to the conceptual story.
Clancy earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1992. In addition to holding number of highly successful one woman exhibits, she has participated in numerous group exhibits at venues including the City Art Museum, Washington, D.C., the Whitney Museum, New York and the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art. Her artwork has been published in a number of books from college textbooks to calendar datebooks. Most notably, the artist was selected from over 6,000 artists from 32 countries for inclusion in the 224-page full-color Fiberarts Design Book 7 published by Lark Books.
She has been the recipient of numerous awards including the Zolli Page Papermaking Award from the Handweaver’s League of Oklahoma, the ‘Neighbor’ award for her achievements in art from the Norman Chamber of Commerce and a wide range of purchase awards by institutions such as the Wisconsin Historical Society and The Empty Space Gallery in Bakersfield, California.
In Oklahoma, Clancy’s work is displayed at the Istvan Gallery, Oklahoma City, Joseph Gierek Fine Art Gallery, Tulsa and Downtown Art & Frame, Norman. Public collections that contain her work in Oklahoma include the Oklahoma School of Science and Math, the Youth and Family Services of El Reno, and the Infant Crisis Services of Oklahoma City. Her artwork is also included in the permanent collections of the International Museum of Collage, Assemblage and Construction in Morelos, Mexico and The Wexford Ireland Arts Centre in Wexford, Ireland. Her works also reside in numerous private collections which include the Kennedy family in Washington, D.C. and the private collection of New York Times bestselling author, Billie Letts.
Sponsored by the Oklahoma Arts Council. For more information contact Amber Sharples at 405.521.2931 or amber.sharples@arts.ok.gov.
The East Gallery is located on the 1st floor of the State Capitol and open daily from 8:00-5:30.