Statement
SUZANNE B GIBBS
I paint from the things I find hardest to put into words. My practice is rooted in personal experience, memory, love and loss, and in the need to hold on to moments, people and feelings that might otherwise slip away. Since beginning my painting career in 2018, I have used painting to process what I have witnessed and lived through, from the devastation of the California wildfires to more intimate experiences of illness, grief and care. My recent work has grown from my mother’s journey with vascular dementia. This body of more than 30 paintings is deeply personal: a way of staying close to her, bearing witness to change, and exploring what happens when memory and identity begin to shift.
Through portraiture, I try to look beyond the surface and honour the strength, vulnerability and inner life of each person I paint. I am drawn to artists such as Frida Kahlo, John Martin and Colin Davidson because their work feels honest, dramatic and emotionally direct. In my own practice, I want to make paintings that invite people to pause and feel something real — works that hold beauty and unease together, and create space for empathy, recognition and connection.
Whatever the subject, if its narrative evokes your personal responses, memories or just emotions, your feedback would be gratefully received. Thank you for visiting my website.