Susan Plum
SOUL RETRIEVAL
Susan Plum
September 12th through October 31st, 2015
Opening Reception: Saturday, September 12th, from 7:00 to 9:00 pm
Deborah Colton Gallery is pleased to present SOUL RETRIEVAL, a solo exhibition of multimedia works from international artist Susan Plum. This exhibition marks Plum’s first solo exhibition in the Deborah Colton Gallery and features works on paper, inkjet prints and sculpture all speaking to the premise of “Soul Retrieval.” The exhibition opens Saturday, September 12th, with a reception for the artist from 7:00 pm until 9:00 pm.
Art historian, museum director, curator and author Jim Edwards writes of Plum’s work:
“Plum’s art is conceptually and physically complex. It has been informed by years of study and work, as well as travel to India, Nepal, Thailand [and her time spent in Mexico] … What she has achieved in her art so eloquently is the beauty and mystery of nature. Plum’s [artworks] are metaphors for the complexities and seamlessness of the world.â€
Of the works presented in SOUL RETRIEVAL, Plum writes:
“The works … represent an ancient and contemporary perspective of ‘Soul Retrieval.’ Shamanism is the practice of reconnecting, healing or bringing balance and harmony to all. For me, the concept of Soul Retrieval has many layers. It isn’t only to retrieve deep memory, fragmented pieces or lost pieces of the soul. Today, the role of the shaman in society is carried out by artists, musicians, scientists, cosmologists, and members of ancient spiritual traditions. With all of the complexity in the universe and that thing that connects us all, I believe the soul retrieval touches every micro and macro existence. We are all evolving and expanding together — it is a universal experience.
The woven glass represents the infrastructure that connects us all. Glass is a mysterious and alchemical material that combines all of the elements: wind, water, air, earth (silica). “For me,†says Plum, “glass concretizes the invisible.” The drawings represent a cosmic story.
Susan Plum was raised in Mexico City and moved to the United States in 1965. She originally trained as a painter but began working with glass after an extended trip to India, Nepal, and Thailand. Living in Seattle, the mecca for glass, she discovered the technique of “flame working,” using a torch and scientific glass (pyrex) rods, to build her pieces. After several sessions at Pilchuck Glass School in Stanwood, Washington, she began to teach there as well as Penland School of Crafts, Penland, North Carolina; Corning Museum of Glass Studio, Corning, New York; and Urban Glass, Brooklyn. This technique allows Plum to “draw†spatially. Plum also creates installation and performance art in addition to functional and sculptural work.
Plum had a solo show at University Art Center Gallery, Houston Baptist University; Houston Arts Alliance Gallery; Project Row Houses, Houston; Station Museum of Contemporary Art, Houston; Field Museum of Science, Chicago.