"After having Minimal Nebula imaged, I continued to layer color onto the same canvas to mimic a stained-glass effect. I knew that I had gotten the layering so heavy that the paint layers were almost cracking at edges, but I didn't stop until I had the right abstract of Thor's Hammer nebula. The process is similar to the delicate cuts/joining of a stained glass piece. I used watercolor pencils & pastel, to help guide the brushes to make the nebula's outer 'environment' and its neuron-looking curves. I used more acrylic, acrylic ink, pastel, loose pigment/mica, and blended watercolor pencils to finish this work. The completed piece allows the viewer participation from their experiences; whether it is a person, flower, neuron, nebula, a skewed hazardous waste symbol; for individual thought."
- Suzanne Hellums
Prints are produced on demand on either mounted canvas, acrylic plexi, or giclee fine art paper in a variety of sizes here in the United States. High-quality print reproductions for your home or office designed by artists living with homelessness or disabilities.
Contact ArtLifting for larger size options.
Anchorage, AK
Once a biochemist and molecular biologist, Suzanne now uses a scientific approach to create her paintings. Art has become a way to combine her interests, which allows her to cope with chronic pain and mobility issues from Crohn's disease and Ankylosing spondylitis. Suzanne often uses resin, acrylics, micas, and polymers; to create new consistencies coupled with traditional art materials. This process informs the line, design, and flow of her paintings. She writes:
"Every painting I make has a scientific process, technique, or inspiration to it. Art connects me to science.”
Suzanne combines her favorite elements of science and nature, as she writes: “I imagine a landscape or object, and what it would look like if it were taken down to its basic scientific components. I find the marriage of science and the beauty of nature most challenging to paint, but also makes for the most interesting pieces.”
“My autoimmune diseases can limit my painting frequency. I put my joys, love, thoughts, and experiences onto my substrates and canvases. I want the viewer to find my awe towards life, while seeing the hope I carry with me.”
Suzanne received a B.S. degree in Clinical Laboratory Science, from the University of Mississippi, and an M.S. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, from Mississippi State University. While working in Alaska, Suzanne was sent to Albuquerque for training. She fell immediately in love with the area, and after begging her family; the move to the arid climate of New Mexico gave Suzanne the physical relief she sought. She was a medical researcher until her health prevented her from returning to the lab. Being in New Mexico has allowed her the mobility to resume painting; something she began as watercolorist during her childhood.
Suzanne has lived in diverse locations from California, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Florida to Alaska. As a result of moving often, her family has remodeled seven homes. Suzanne’s current home was designed around a particular piece of granite that now makes up the kitchen counter. Her series “Granite Inspired”, featured at ArtLifting, was inspired by the earthy tones of the stone.
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