Suzanne Seesman, cloud prize 2014 winner
With our Cloud Prize 2015 deadline almost here (June 1, 11:59PM.... that’s THIS MONDAY!!!) we bring you our third and final winner from last year’s submissions: Suzanne Seesman. Read more about Suzanne in her questionnaire below and visit suzanneseesman.com for more about her practice.
2. Tell us about three things you love.
Only three? Really? And, things you say - not people? OK well then here goes:
One - Philadelphia. I’m not kidding - I love this city even when it isn’t reciprocating (which is a lot of the time).
Two - Swimming especially in open water.
Three - Ok I’m going to cheat and make a quick list because there’s so much that I don’t want to exclude
grilling out in the summer,
playing in the snow in winter,
in anticipation of the next question - espresso.
3. Please describe your current relationship with coffee.
At the moment coffee and I have a pretty solid relationship. I'm actually just finishing an espresso as we speak (I write). I’ve given it up from time to time for various reason, political and physiological. Currently though, I try to take a middle way by limiting my consumption to one cup a day, or five a week. Often I fail. I’m no that good with limits and boundaries. I work several jobs. These include adjunct teaching and restaurant work. Most of the work that I do requires constant social interaction and near continual movement. Caffeine helps me fulfill the imperative to stay “on” and I don’t drink sodas so coffee is crucial. I try to remember how much goes into a cup of coffee, though. It’s mind blowing. In terms of labor and resources coffee is a profound drink.
On another level I try not to drink too much out of fear that I will forget what a delicious treat it can be.
4. What is the best show you saw in 2014?
This is a really difficult question for a woman with boundary issues! “Bests” are tricky because they depend on the rubrics. In my mind, 2014 was a really good year for art in Philadelphia. For you, and for Cloud fans everywhere, I’ll mention some of the things that effected me as an artist in 2014 in order of their geographic distance from my body.
To Fade And Spill Out And (And Look At Another's Whole) curated by Zach Rawe and Jamie Felton, took place just down the street from me at FJORD in late winter of 2014. Both iterations of this two-part exhibition were excellent. What did I loved about To Fade And Spill Out…? Aside from the fact that it was put on in an artist run space that I admire, this show made me think/feel deeply about painting. It shifted the way I think about painting as a practice and paintings as objects in the world - especially in relation to bodies. Also, I very much appreciate when a show’s appearance communicates a conversation rather than an individual’s preferences. I’m a big fan of dialogues. Full disclosure here, I am friends with the curators and happily (for the reasons stated above) wrote for the show catalog. I was also introduced to Angela Dufresne’s work through this show and am now a huge fan.
From FJORD, I’ll go to over to the Ice Box at the Crane for Begin Where You Are. The artist-curator team of this show consisted of Tim Belknap, Anna Neighbor and Ryan McCartney. Again, a show that was a conversation played out in form. The name of the show implied terms like “emerging” and “local” with all of the accompanying baggage. but was, in fact a show of work by highly accomplished and visible contemporary artists who make this less low visibility city (Philadelphia) home. In this way this conversation was about how all artists always being, every time, where they are. All practices have multiple beginnings.
From the Crane I’ll hop on my bike and head over to West Philly to hit up the ICA which had a great year overall - maybe the best overall year I’ve been around for (five years or so). Readykeulous by Ridykeulous, Nicole Eisenman, Moyra Davey, Kara Walker’s Roughneck Constuctivist were all really great shows. And again, weather concise and contemplative (Moyra Davey) or urgent and ongoing (Roughneck Constuctivist) all seemed conversational. Among the very best things I saw at the ICA this year though, were videos. Tamar Guimarães’ film Canoas and Flying Lotus video Until The Quiet Comes were on view at the same time in different exhibition spaces. Both were really affective though too much to absorb in the same - so I went back for separate viewings.
Jen Nugent and Jorge Galvan’s video on view as part of the open video call on the other hand was great in that I laugh giggle every time I think of it.
The farthest away I would go on my best of 2014 tour is to Bed-Stuy NY. In 2014 I got to go to the opening show of the Bannerette gallery there. This space is run by two of my favorite people and artists in the world - Emily Davidson and Stewart Lorimar. This really made my year! Their first show also focused on the body or the figure. This stop is the farthest away from me but the closest to my heart!
Seesman’s Lost Worlds On Television (The Artifacts) at the Galleries at Moore College of Art, 2013
5. There are so many artist grants/residencies/awards/calls out there for artists. What interested you about the Cloud Prize?
Funny the question should be phrased in just this way because I actually reached a point of burnout just before I applied for the Cloud Prize last year. In honor of my friend Emily Davidson (mentioned above), I sometimes call the application process “running the race game”. Applying can be endlessly tiring. For so many of us who are trying to make our lives “work” while also trying to make art (or play music, or write, etc.) applying to things can feel like a pointless game of running in circles. It can be defeating.
So, just before I applied for the cloud prize, I made a rule for myself to only apply for things I would support regardless of personal gain. My thinking was that if I only apply to things I support, than my applications will have value regardless of the result for me as an individual, personally or professionally. This cut the number of things I put my mind to dramatically.
The Cloud Prize was the first thing that I applied to under the rule. To win, was an honor that I hadn’t anticipated. I was really surprised when I found out. The honor is so much greater this way. I applied because I think that what Matthew and Kristen (cloud owners) have done in putting together this prize is excellent and I wanted to let them know that I support it. I was excited for the chance to get my work in front of Antony Elms because I respect him as a curator who knows what it is like to be an artist. He was so generous in spending his time this way. After all, 2014 had to have been a busy year for him.
I’ve applied to many things under the rule since and not won. However, the policy still works because I never feel that I’ve misspent my time or money. I sometimes slip up (boundaries again!) but for the most part it’s been a really guide. I highly recommend this approach.
6. Tell us how the Cloud Prize had an impact on you and/or your practice.
It has had a huge impact. Looking at this interview, I realize that I have not yet dropped a sports analogy on you. Here it is:
Winning The Cloud Prize was like receiving a cool cup of water at the 5 mile mark of a Marathon.
It’s important to receive support. It serves as a reminder to keep it up. Art-making is a long haul which is difficult to remember sometimes living on the east coast. I learned to be an “artist” in Southeastern Ohio (Ohio University!). There was no question there, that being an artist is a lifelong vocation. The artists (thinkers, musicians, etc.) that I knew there, were making it work in all variety of ways. The feeling is much different here. There is far more focus on institutional validation and on having a certain kind of career. Hegemonic structures, rules and taste carry much more weight here and cause a certain kind of pressure that can be stifling. Artist run projects and prizes like The Cloud Prize serve as much needed antidotes in this environment. Support and validation are necessary for artists because we are humans. With the Cloud Prize these coming from other artists and the curators they respect.
In basic monetary terms, the effect on my life has been undeniably positive. I’ll be going on my first artist’s residency this summer - to the International Ceramics Studio in Kecskemét Hungary. The money from the Cloud Prize has definitely helped to make this possible.
7. What’s up next for you?
A lot! Between the St. Claire and Vox Populi membership there are many hours of meetings, spread-sheet gazing, and emailing ahead. These also come with the much appreciated privileges too though. Both involve working with amazing artists, writers, and curators from Philly and afar. At the St.Claire we just finished a month long collaboration with the ArtBlog so that is a bit mellow at the moment. At Vox Populi we’re gearing up for our annual Juried Exhibition in July - curators Paddy Johnson and Martine Syms just announced their decisions yesterday!
More immediately though, I’m going to try to let those things rest for a bit as I eat some lunch and head to the studio where I’m finishing a piece for Vox Populi’s New Member’s Show. I might also do some laundry later too, if there’s time!
Suzanne Seesman grew up in the Maryland suburbs of Washington DC. She studied International Studies and Fine Arts at Ohio University graduating with a BFA in Sculpture. She received her MFA in Sculpture from Tyler School of Art. In addition to working as an artist, Suzanne has worked in education, labor rights, and the service industry. She spent a year working as an AmeriCorps VISTA with high-school students in Northern California's central valley. Her past and current work experiences have a significant influence on her current practice.
Her work relies on sculptural and performative methods for thinking through the idealisms of the last century. Educational, political, and social movements are memorialized, criticized, and interrogated through various formats including drawing, sculptures, videos and performances.
tangentwithtanner
yousharknotpass
jbbartram-illu
dededos
annaxmalina
