NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
Sept. 22, 2008
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Ann Dee Lee
Public Information Director
Oklahoma Arts Council
(405) 521-2931
anndee@arts.ok.gov
LAUGHING MATTERS TOO EXHIBITED AT STATE CAPITOL
Oklahoma City, OK – Laughter is very important to Norman artist Sue Clancy. She creates works of art which are conceptual jokes that talk about various aspects of being human. Her exhibit, Laughing Matters Too will beon display in the first floor of the East Gallery at the State Capitol from Sept. 22 – Nov. 16. Curated by the Oklahoma Arts Council, the East Gallery is open daily from 8:30-5:00.
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 humorously use animal images and word-play – laughing matters – in order to share my thoughts about serious matters pertaining to human life such as technology, ethics, culture, and food – to name a very few concepts. Humor is often dismissed as frivolous but I think that humor is essential to our mental health. Humor surprises us, shakes us out of the doldrums, helps us associate concepts in new ways, think outside the box, re-think assumptions, learn, communicate and to open ourselves up to life again. A sense of humor helps us think of complex ideas in a ‘big-picture’ way which in turn can help us find solutions. It is truth and pain from a different perspective. Seriously, laughing matters too.”
Clancy actively pursued art in her youth and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1992. Clancy has participated in numerous group exhibits at venues including the City Art Museum in Washington, D.C., the Whitney Museum in New York and the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, Boulder, Colorado. She's also had a number of highly successful one woman exhibits.
Clancy's fine artwork has been published in a number of books as diverse as college textbooks and 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 which was edited by Susan Mowrey Kieffer and 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, CA.
Her work is displayed in Oklahoma Galleries including the Istvan Gallery, Oklahoma City, Joseph Gierek Fine Art Gallery, Tulsa and Downtown Art & Frame, Norman. Public collections that contain her works include the Oklahoma School of Science and Math, the Youth and Family Services of El Reno Oklahoma 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.
For more information, contact Ann Dee Lee, Public Information Director, Oklahoma Arts Council, (405) 521-2931 or anndee@arts.ok.gov.
ABOUT THE OKLAHOMA ARTS COUNCIL
The Oklahoma Arts Council is a state agency whose mission is to improve lives through the arts by promoting and sustaining the development of a thriving arts environment, which is essential to quality of life, education and economic vitality for all Oklahomans.
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