One of the state’s most gifted artists finds her muse in feminism, poetry, and the thrill of travel
by Laura Kolnoski
Poetry, literature, women’s issues, and even Superstorm Sandy provide inspirations for the diverse, distinctive, and thought-provoking work of award-winning artist Suzanne Anan.
A graphic designer, illustrator, painter, and college instructor—Anan was one of 50 artists chosen for the Dublin Biennial International Contemporary Art Exhibition and was awarded a Silver Medal and Honorary Diploma from the Arts-Sciences-Letters Association at the Intercontinental Hotel Paris Le Grand. The Paris award recognized her achievements in a 2013 exhibition at the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts at the Carrousel du Louvre. Although these big nights for the honors were mere days apart, the artist attended them both.
“I literally dropped the painting in Ireland and hopped over to Paris,” Anan said. “I attended the award ceremony at the LeGrand and returned to Dublin for the opening.”
The artist was also commissioned to create a painting depicting the love story of Sir Paul McCartney and his wife, Nancy Shevell, one which hangs in their England estate. Closer to home, she designed the signage for Belmar’s Post- Sandy “Buy-a-Board” boardwalk restoration campaign, as well as the borough’s familiar New Wave logo entitled “Beautiful Sea” (the literal translation of Belmar).
A veteran of shows and exhibitions throughout the U.S. and Italy, she is currently working on a series of 26 paintings documenting “before” and “after” Superstorm Sandy that she plans to exhibit together in a solo show next year.
Many of her figurative compositions feature women as their primary subject(s), a component she feels developed more by evolution than design. Her composition “Woman in Blue” was recently chosen by juror Cora Rosevear, curator of the Museum of Modern Art, for an exhibition titled “Bound” at a national women’s exhibition. Her painting “Ain’t I a Woman?” (inspired by a 1851 speech by Sojourner Truth) was selected by juror Daniel Shay of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC for a National Arts Exhibition.
“I’m not sure I realized I was being called into that direction until I had the opportunity to show in Florence in 2010 in a human rights themed exhibition, which sought to bring attention to human trafficking,” Anan said. “My mentor, Angiola Churchill, told our NYU class, ‘Every woman is a feminist. You can either shout or whisper but, as an artist it’s your responsibility to find your own voice.’ I started researching the subject and the deeper I went, the more I became inspired.”
“Her images are evocative—working through moods and memories to reveal what it means to feel human,” said Roddy Wildemann, fellow artist and owner of Torche’ Gallery in Belmar, where some of Anan’s works are displayed.
Always creative, Anan was urged at a young age to choose a second career, and selected graphic design. One of her last undergraduate classes was a painting course, however, where she found her true method of expression.
“Until then, drawing was my medium, so the possibilities of paint opened my world,” she recalled. “A few years later I applied at NYU for a graduate study abroad program in Italy.” With a strong portfolio in design, she was accepted as one of 20 international students to pursue painting, art theory, and criticism in Venice. She signed up to learn Italian and lived there for two years.
“It was life-changing and certainly broadened my perspective,” observed Anan. “The more I painted, the more I started to see a narrative in my work. I loved living in Italy. I became liberated from my own inhibitions as an artist but, more importantly, I was exposed to the great classic Renaissance artists and viewed works hanging in the spaces in which they were created.” Her study groups met at the Peggy Guggenheim Museum on the Grand Canal and she traveled throughout the country viewing the original works of Michelangelo, Da Vinci, Titian, Caravaggio, and Venetian artists Tiepolo, Tintoretto, and Veronese.
“The one artist who struck me—and the only female among all the men—was Artemisia Gentileschi,” Anan said. “Seeing her work, I started to find my own voice.”
She received her Master’s Degree of Art from New York University and a Bachelors of Fine Art from Kean University. She continues her study at the Arts Students League of New York.
The other side of Anan’s dual career—designer/creative director for newspapers—played out primarily at the state’s largest daily, providing opportunities to create posters and other materials for New Jersey theatrical giants like The Newark Museum, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Two River Theater, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, and the State Theater. “I love conceptual design work, especially posters,” she said. “I thrive from the passion and artistry that goes into a performance.”
In addition to Venice, Anan’s works have appeared in the Italian towns of Florence, Lecce, Brescia, and Ferrara. Her artwork has been donated to non-profit organizations and commissioned by corporations like Johnson and Johnson, and organizations such as The Newark Museum. She especially enjoys teaching senior level students at the Robert Busch School of Design at Kean University, helping them develop and build portfolios to prepare for job searches in illustration, motion graphics, advertising, and design.
“I am inspired by the energy learning creates,” she explained.
By the end of this year, Anan will have participated in three more shows: The American Artists Professional League 86th Grand National Exhibition at New York’s Salmagundi Club; in the Robert Lange Studio Exhibition titled “I See A Pattern” in Charleston, South Carolina; and at the Asbury Underground Show at Art 629 in Asbury Park.
“One of the most emotional commissions I undertook was a portrait for a 90-year WWII veteran of his late wife, Jeanne Audrey Bonk Baldino, as a young woman in Belmar,” Anan said. “He wanted to commemorate her for being one of the first female lifeguards in 1945 when the men were off to war.” Temporarily hanging in Belmar’s municipal building, the painting will eventually be featured in the rebuilt Taylor pavilion on Ocean Avenue.
The artist has been awarded for art direction as well as poster, catalog, and editorial design. She is known for appealing to a diverse, multi-cultural, and global audience. Said the deputy director of the Newark Museum, “She is extraordinarily creative, detail oriented, and has the demeanor of a cherub. Her work has made me look good on more occasions then I care to count!”
The mother of two sons, Anan engages in a myriad of youth-oriented projects. In addition to lecturing youth on art, she volunteers with the Girl Scouts and Brownies, helping them earn their painting badges. (Through the organization’s recent painting project “Friendship Rings,” 20 girls created 20 pieces of art that were installed as one piece at Belmar’s Torche’ Galerie.) She still, however, finds time to indulge in her favorite inspirational source.
“Poetry is at the core of my creative work; I read it to unleash my thinking,” Anan mused.
Suzanne Anan
suzanneanan.com