Sculpture exhibition 2021: Decontructing the Feminine

 Sculpture exhibition Group Exhibit August/September 2021

                                            Beautiful Offering, Susanne Nielsen

Susanne Nielsen, MFA, PhD

Through my art, the viewer as do I , can continuously explore and develop themes centered on the mystery of creation – between the natural and the contrived. The focus is specifically on the theme of pregnancy and the societal notions and expectations that come with that process after having attended 13 baby showers in my first year in the U.S.at age 30!  There is a certain taboo in our society today, with regard to female reactions to pregnancy and motherhood.  It is the cultural norm to have children, to be excited to be pregnant, and to relish the role of motherhood.  Although many mothers do indeed feel these things, some do not.

The viewer can experience the artistic intention that has of late begun to tread a secondary path found within the first.  Besides investigating the “naturalness” of creation, there is in the newer work a look at the paradox created within that very same concept by the onslaught of technology.  Though an uncomfortable and often inflammatory topic, this art begs the questions of technological advancement within the “natural” process of creation and birth by the use of in-vitro fertilization, embryo cryopreservation, cloning, and gender selection.  There are thousands of embryos “on ice” at this very moment and the fact is, and we are in a position where we must pick and choose who will be given the chance to participate in the world.  What, one asks, is to become of those that are not chosen?   My art challenges the way we look at the technological advances in this field and the cultural stigmas that surround it.  Because of my interest in the tactile sense of the objects I create, the work uses  a variety of mediums to explore ever new aspects of the topic. Creating in clay with processed  and  appropriated found objects  utilizes each medium’s intrinsic qualities, reflecting  and enhancing the nature of the imagery  - skin-toned, hard shelled, or bedded in soft tissues and pastels, reminiscent of lovely holiday offerings . . . the impact is quite unsettling.