September 14–December 23, 2022
Since the 1960s, Suzanne Jackson has worked as a professional artist, first in Los Angeles, where she established the artist-run Gallery 32, and later in Savannah, Georgia, where she relocated in 1996 to start a teaching career. She painted while while performing as a dancer on tour in South America and worked as a scenic designer in regional theaters after graduating from Yale School of Drama. Moving to the south in the 1990s caused Jackson’s visual language to change; it became more abstract, three-dimensional, and environmental. During this time in her life, she worked hard but in relative obscurity in the building that is still her home and place of employment today. Paintings and associated sketches during this time period utilized elements from the studio and daily life to create physical layers, deformed surfaces, or projecting forms.
Jackson’s paintings have recently undergone a radical transformation by pulling the color and media off the canvas foundation, something no other artist has ever done. These partially transparent pieces essentially free painting from the limitations of the support by suspending color, light, material, and shape in midair. Blues, swing, and what Jackson refers to as “Classical African American Music” are all references in Listen’ N Home, which conjures up the imagined score to Jackson’s artistic creations. The exhibition at The Arts Club of Chicago presents Jackson’s shift to environmental abstraction, marking the territory and trajectory of her late-life breakthrough paintings. It does so through a selective representation of key works from the last 20 years as well as a newly made monumental installation.
The Arts Club of Chicago
201 E. Ontario Street
Chicago, Illinois 60611
United States
Hours: Tuesday–Friday 11am–6pm,
Saturday 11am–3pm
T +1 312 787 3997
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