Category Archives: Large Works

Works, framed or unframed, that are arbitrarily larger than 36″ in either direction.

SUSAN STRACHAN JOHNSON

Shoreline 5Biography

Susan studied Philosophy and History of Art at Leeds University (BA Hons), and Design and Craft with the City & Guilds Institute of London (Level 3 Diploma).  Having been a painter all her life, she has also worked in fibre art since 2003. Among many other juried shows, she has shown by invitation at the 2003 Biennale in Florence, Threadworks 2004 and 2007, and the Grand National Quilt Show in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2013. Awards include Best in Show in Threadworks 2004, the Fibre Art award at Insights (2006), and the Rebecca Burghardt Emerging Artist Award at Touched by Fire (2008).

Susan teaches workshops in fibre art techniques throughout Southern Ontario, and also offers private instruction in her studio, though her popular “Play for a Day” getaways. In addition to working in fibre, Susan accepts mural and church commissions, and paints portraits in watercolour and other media from photographs.

Artist’s Statement

My work is inspired by nature and the landscape around my home: I am an avid environmentalist. I work with distressed fibres, paper-and-textile combinations, and found objects; I also paint and dye my own materials. Recently my work has been increasingly realistic, and I have focused more on line and colour than stitch. Increasingly I am happy to just observe things; I often use shadows of myself to reinforce my role as a watcher, seeking not only to portray my surroundings, but also to comment upon them.

Website: www.strachanjohnson.com

Blog: www.strachanjohnson.com/blogspot

Clear WatersRiverbed 4

 

Mother Universe

Journey

Hills of Wellington County

 

Shadow Fairy

DON’T MISS THIS OPENING!

One of our members, Leslie Miles, will be part of a show called View from the Hill and Beyond, to take place from January 17 to April 6 2014, at Guelph Civic Museum, 52 Norfolk Street, (519) 836-1221. This is going to be a special show in a special gallery, and if you would like to hear more about the work, the artists, and the raison d’être of the show, go to the opening reception on Friday 17th, between 7 and 9 p.m.

The Civic Museum used to be the Loretto Convent, and formed part of a collection of buildings belonging to the Church of our Lady Immaculate, an iconic symbol of Guelph for well over a century. Rather than tearing it down, the City of Guelph and the University of Guelph helped to make the renovation of the old building a reality, and the new museum opened in 2012, providing a new and improved venue for the archives of the history of Guelph, and for exhibitions of its art.

Below is one of Leslie’s paintings, a view looking up Carden Street at the famous twin towers of the Church of Our Lady.

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Other artists represented in the show are also well known locally. They are Scott Abbott, Laura Coutts, Janet Ollers and Kathleen Schmalz. SEE YOU THERE – DON’T BE SQUARE!