Suzanna Schlemm is a realist painter working from observation of the world, both outside and inside. Originally from Brazil, she is currently based in Darien, CT and New York City. 

STATEMENT

- Process:

The process of painting, for me, is parallel to living: it is constantly happening on the side, even when I am not in front of the canvas. The images that I use in my paintings surface in my mind, arising from a much deeper place. When they begin to form and bubble up, I pay attention and try to capture these images through notes, sketches and small compositions in my notebook. Later I look for or produce the photographs I need as visual reference for the painting. I always paint from observation, and most of the time I create my own reference material: a collage in different media like photos and sketches. There isn’t much thinking in this phase: I simply allow the river to flow, and the he more I paint, the richer the flow gets. The reflection comes later, when the work is done or underway.

My themes self assemble organically, in groups of paintings. Lately, I have been painting women and their children living immersed in nature, in intimate relationship with their animals and their environment. They work, rest, play and enjoy profound solitude and connection. They look deeply into themselves, but also look after each other. Together, they form a utopian female tribe. 

- Origin:

I don’t really know where my imagery comes from and I like to keep it that way. However, I know that the primordial soup of my childhood has all the elements I now see in my paintings. 

My family of origin is predominantly composed of strong women. Initially, my grandmother, mother, aunt, sisters and cousins, and now our nieces and daughters. A matriarchal family for sure, but not necessarily a peaceful one. The women and girls in my painting are usually alone. I also grew up in close proximity to dense tropical forests. My most cherished childhood memories involve being in nature, in contemplation and solitude. In the forest, the feeling of belonging is visceral. Nature is a womb. 

Often times, when a painting is well advanced I realize the figures and symbols on canvas already exist in mythological stories from varying times and cultures. This reminds me that our separateness is an illusion, and that our roots connect us underneath, drinking from the powerful and vast collective subconscious of the human psyche, where image is the only language. This notion moves me deeply.

Painting allows all of this to come to light and thrive. The canvas is a mirror where I can look at myself and see human kind looking back at me.

- Technique:

Once I make a mark on the canvas, I lift my brush. I don’t smooth these marks, honoring the brushstrokes as they come. I like to be able to look at my paintings and see the image I am building as well as the very paint it is made of. For this to work, I strive to get the right colors and tones on the pallet, before they reach the canvas. 

I always paint in layers. The first layers usually cover the whole canvas, but as the work progresses, I leave different areas untouched and only go where I feel I am needed. The whole canvas does not need all of my attention all of the time: this is very easy to forget when I am deeply enthralled in the work. At the same time, this constant assessment is one of the most exciting aspects of painting. Layer after layer, the painting becomes a swiss cheese in which the hollows and the surface work together to build a dynamic whole.

Lastly, I avoid becoming too descriptive by adding details, but instead look for the kind of information that is relevant to painting, like tone, color and shape. This way of thinking points me in the direction of the slightly disruptive realism that I am trying to achieve.

-Suzanna Schlemm

SELECTED SHOWS

2024 Women Artists Show, Dacia Gallery, New York, NY – group show

2022 All Things Being, Crown Gallery, Metro Art Studios, Bridgeport CT – group show

2021 Mercedes Matter Awards Show, Margalit Startup City, NYC – group show

2021 Mostraí, Brazilian Embassy, NYC – group show

2021 Girls, Birds and Women, New Haven Lawn Club, New Haven CT – solo show

2020 Mercedes Matter Awards Show, Margalit Startup City, NYC – group show

2020 About Women, The Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum, Norwalk, CT - group show

2019 New Members Show, Silvermine Art Center, New Canaan, CT – group show

2018 Até Aqui, Galeria de Arte Brasileira, São Paulo, Brasil – solo show

2018 Faces and Figure, Stamford Art Association, Stamford, CT – group show

2012 Grupo Parede, Museu Parque das Ruinas, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – group show

2010 Grupo Parede, Centro Cultural Correios, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – group show

EDUCATION:

Long Pose Drawing and Painting with Evan Kitson, New York Academy of Art - 2024

Painting Workshop with Alex Kanevsky, ES Paint - Madrid, Spain - 2015

Painting Certificate Program, New York Studio School of Drawing, Painting and Sculpture, NYC  2001 / 2002

Printmaking, School of Visual Arts, NYC - 2002

Illustration – School of Visual Arts, NYC - 2002

Anatomy for Artists – New York Art Student League, NYC - 2001

Portraiture in Pastel – New York Art Student League, NYC - 2001

Figure Drawing from Life – New York Art Student League, NYC - 2001 / 2002

Graphic Design – Parsons The New School of Design, NYC - 2001

Advertising & Communications – Bachelor’s, Universidade Helio Alonso, Rio de Janeiro, BR, 1992

HONOR AND AWARDS

2021 Mercedes Matter Award, NYC

2020 Mercedes Matter Award, NYC

2019 Selected as guild member, Silvermine Art Center, New Canaan, CT.

2002 Scholarship, New York Studio School of Drawing, Painting and Sculpture

INITIATIVES

In 2015 Suzanna was selected for the coveted Alex Kanevsky painting workshop in Madrid, Spain. Without the funds for the trip, but unable to pass the opportunity to learn from an artist who had always been an important influence on her, she created a crowdfunding project that not only got her to Madrid, but turned out to be a life changing adventure in and of itself.

Inspired by that experience, a few years later she conceived and launched her innovative membership program on Patreon, where a group of collectors and supporters fund the very work they intend to buy in exchange of special benefits, as well as exclusive access to her production through the members-only Instagram account @studio_live_diaries.

Suzanna believes the simple and yet revolutionary idea that “an artist should be able to live off her artwork. Unapologetically.”