Artist's Statement
I feel very lucky to be an artist, making art, spending time with other artists, art lovers and models. Having my own studio has been like winning the lottery.. Most of my time in the studio is spent oil painting or drawing from live models. I may say I’m “working," but in truth it’s a labor of love and every moment a joy.
I am a representational artist, mainly working in oils, valuing the freedom to add my own twists, interpretations or exaggerations rather than capturing an exact likeness like a camera or photocopier. But I love diversity so I also work in various other mediums, including charcoal, acrylic, watercolour, pastel and intaglio (engraving). I enjoy playing with the unique characteristics of each medium, be it visible brushstrokes, lines or smudges.
Even when I dabble in mixed media, photography or installations, my art always seems to come back to the subject of the human figure. I think I was born to be a figurative artist. At age three I amazed my parents by drawing hands and feet on stick figures, and was already frustrated with the limitations of my crayons since they failed to create a fine enough line for batting eyelashes like on the cartoon characters on TV.
Any day in the studio is a great day. The endless beauty of human anatomy keeps me motivated, inspired and challenged. Repetition or boredom is never a problem since each face and personality is as unique as a fingerprint. I am also spoiled by living in a mecca for the best art models in the world.
I was born in New Orleans, but have lived most of my life in San Francisco where I did postgraduate studies in painting, which I juggled with a rewarding career as a food stylist. I lived in Paris for a year and a half studying at Le Cordon Bleu and La Varenne, which had a profound effect on me. Today I live overlooking the ocean in Santa Monica, CA.
Photos
Me as a girl.
CV
Born in New Orleans, LA.
Has lived most of life in San Francisco and Santa Monica, CA.
Education
Academy of Art, Masters of Fine Arts (Painting) Program, San Francisco, CA.
Le Cordon Bleu, Paris, France.
Representation
Saatchi Art
https://www.saatchiart.com/account/artworks/297471
Artist Residency
2019 Contemporary Irish Arts Center Los Angeles at Bergamot Station, Los Angeles, CA.
Organizes
Brentwood Art Center Uninstructed Figurative Workshop, Los Angeles, CA.
CIACLA Uninstructed Figurative Workshop, Los Angeles, CA.
Getty Center: Drawing with the Masters, Los Angeles, CA.
Awards
Brand 40 National Works on Paper, Brand Library, Pasadena, CA.
Professional Affiliations
Women’s Painters West
Exhibitions
2019 Z Art Academy Exhibition, Los Angeles, CA.
2019 18th Street Airport Campus's WestEdge Open Studio, Santa Monica, CA.
2019 Transformations Exhibition, 18th Street Arts Center Airport Campus, Santa Monica, CA.
2019 Student Faculty Exhibition, Brentwood Art Center, Los Angeles, CA.
2019 Only Hearts, Santa Monica, CA.
2019 Montana Avenue Art Walk, Santa Monica, CA.
2018 Only Hearts, Santa Monica, CA.
Montana Avenue Art Walk, Santa Monica, CA.
2017 Student Faculty Exhibition, Brentwood Art Center, Los Angeles, CA.
2016 Montana Avenue Holiday Walk, Santa Monica, CA.
Student Faculty Exhibition, Brentwood Art Center, Los Angeles, CA.
2015 Student Faculty Exhibition, Brentwood Art Center, Los Angeles, CA.
Espresso Cielo’s, Santa Monica, CA.
2014 Student Faculty Exhibition, Brentwood Art Center, Los Angeles, CA.
2013 Student Faculty Exhibition, Brentwood Art Center, Los Angeles, CA.
Café Montana, Santa Monica, CA.
2012 Laguna Beach College of Art and Design, Student Faculty Exhibition, Brentwood Art Center, Los Angeles, CA.
17th Street Café, Santa Monica, CA.
2011 Brand Annual National Exhibition of Works on Paper, Brand Library and Art Center, Glendale, CA.
Student Faculty Exhibition, Brentwood Art Center, Los Angeles, CA.
2010 Student Faculty Exhibition, Brentwood Art Center, Los Angeles, CA.
2009 Student Faculty Exhibition, Brentwood Art Center, Los Angeles, CA.
Organizes workshops at two venues and lectures at The Getty Center
Brentwood Art Center Figurative Workshops - This year celebrates the 5th anniversary of creating and running the uninstructed figurative workshops at Brentwood Art Center. At the time, due to L.A.'s astronomical real estate, a string of artists lost their studios, sadly ending most of the Westside's figurative workshops. I approached BAC about me organizing and running an uninstructed figurative workshop as part of their community outreach. Being a non-profit art school, BAC generously allows our twice weekly workshops to be affordably priced and welcoming to artists of all levels. My goal is to hire diverse models celebrating all skin colors, races, ages and sizes. These models, along with our workshop artists, are a lovely group of people I feel lucky to call my art community.
Brentwood Art Center www.brentwoodartcenter.com 13031 Montana Ave. (at 26th St.), Los Angeles, CA. 90049 Tel: (310) 451-5657 Email: info@brentwoodart.com
CIACLA (Contemporary Irish Arts Center Los Angeles) Figureative Workshops - After two years of discussions on both sides of the pond the wonderful and generous people at CIACLA have allowed the dream of a monthly uninstructed figurative workshop at CIACLA's newly opened art center at Bergamont Station to become a reality. Aside from hosting our workshops, CIACLA supports Irish and local artists in a multidisciplinary program of visual arts, theatre, performance, dance, music, literature, design, film. and comedy.
CIACLA (Contemporary Irish Arts Centre Los Angeles) www.ciacla.com Bergamot Station, 2525 Michigan Ave,., Suite B1, Santa Monica, CA. 90404 Email: info@ciacla.com
The Getty Center Lectures - Along with everyone else in attendance, I was exhilarated by what was supposed to be a one-off Getty lecture by the extraordinarily talented Zhenya Gershman. A gifted speaker, she has uniquely mastered the art of wearing all three hats of artist, art historian and teacher. Her wealth of knowledge comes from years of extensive research and 11 years of working at the Getty. I urged her to create a series of lectures and help her organize them.
The Getty Center www.getty.edu 1200 Getty Center Dr., Los Angeles CA 90049 Email: visitorservices@getty.edu
Brentwood Art Center
Uninstructed Figurative Workshops
The Getty Center
Drawing With the Masters by Zhenya
CIACLA at Bergamot
Uninstructed Figurative Workshops
Copyright © 2019 M Susan Broussard - All Rights Reserved.