Generations
Artist Statement
Chrysalid
cotton, synthetic fiber, paper, pigment, thread
24" x 32" x 9"
1993
Chrysalid DETAIL
Old Stories DETAIL
silk, rayon, pigment, thread, wood / dye
72" x 18" x 6"
1991
“In my own family, only a vestige of my immigrant grandparents’ dialect remains but somehow remnant of their oral traditions persist and endure and continually inform. That continuum—that dialogue between generations—is implied in this work by the use of layering, not only with cloth, but with images of text.” –Susan Lordi Marker
Lost Dialect DETAIL
Silk gauze, thread / dye
72" x 18" x 6"
1991
Soulskin: Listening to Julia
linen, silk, cotton, thread / dye
29" x 26"
1995
Soulskin; Listening to Julia DETAIL
Excavation: Soulskin #11
linen blend, thread, dye, pigment / devoré
66" x 34"
“Here I present cloth as having the same significance as other essential elements of the earth. Much of the linen is burnt away, leaving a thin, transparent veil of fiber connecting what remains. Extending the piece 13" away from the wall gives it a floating, tenuous presence. I wanted to elevate the value of cloth as personal evidence of a life.” –Susan Lordi Marker
Excavation: Soulskin #11 DETAIL
Manifesto
Cotton, nylon, pigment, thread / dye
65" x 65" x 5"
1993
“The idea that the past continues to inform the present intrigues me. In Manifesto, a dialogue among generations is glimpsed through a palimpsest of images and text. This layering could imply gradual disappearance, yet also suggest a process of unfolding and emerging.” –Susan Lordi Marker
Manifesto DETAIL
“I work the cloth until it bears the humanness; it must breath the hand of the maker.” –Susan Lordi Marker
Manifesto DETAIL
Manifesto DETAIL
Tree
Collage
11" x 7.5"
1992
“On one of the ‘pages’, a figure suddenly springs upward, the image of a joyful young boy, arms flung up, his body patterned with green and yellow, except for the hands which are wine red. The background texture consists of plant motifs, frequently seen in the artist’s textile. Susan Lordi Marker has talked about her love of natural forms, of the “fibrousness” of prairie grasses. The variations in such forms are a visual counterpoint to the regularity of woven textile structure.” –Hildreth York, in Portfolio book
Book of Experiments
Mixed media
24" x 22" x 3"
1992-97
“Lordi Marker’s handmade ‘book’ of experiments is especially intriguing. Swatches of materials, images of various sorts, are stitched together as if they were fragments of dreams, complex and multi-layered as dreams are. The pieces in this book sometimes precede, but often accompany the development of ongoing work. In this gathering of samples are ideas and images that will occur in finished work. Even the most spontaneous-seeming of Lordi Marker’s early and later pieces may have undergone arduous rehearsal, possibly in more than one medium. The book of experiments is, in a very real sense, the artist’s visual diary” –Hildreth York, in Portfolio book
Book of Experiments DETAIL
Excavation: Soulskin #10
linen blend, thread, dye, pigment / devoré
30" x 47" x 13"
1997
“I embrace the idea of “old but kept” cloth as a metaphorical expression of people’s lives. Clearly cloth can be physical evidence of past experiences, traditions and rituals. The text which is burnt through the surface alludes to a personal account, traditions of storytelling, or proverbs passed down through generations, These are all intangibles which can slip through one’s fingers if they are not somehow preserved, Both skin and cloth are fragile and vulnerable to the elements, and I question what really lasts, or endures through time.” –Susan Lordi Marker
Excavation: Soulskin #10 DETAIL
Keeper of the Records
silk, cotton, synthetic fiber, pigment, thread
72" x 43" x 6"
1992
“Much of my work refers to documents, books or diaries, yet at the same time suggesting communication beyond the written word. Who or what is the true ‘keeper of the records? How do we preserve the intangible? The forms I use could also carry metaphorical messages about preservation, preciousness, and rarity.”– Susan Lordi Marker
Keeper of the Records DETAIL
Keeper of the Records DETAIL
Keeper of the Records DETAIL
Sympathetic Resonance
cotton, silk, nylon, synthetic fiber, pigment, thread
42" x 29" x 6"
1992
Sympathetic Resonance DETAIL
Sympathetic Resonance DETAIL
Tell Your Own Story
cotton, silk, nylon, synthetic fiber, pigment, thread
42" x 29" x 6"
1992
Tell Your Own Story DETAIL
Passageways, Passageways—Anatomy of an Heirloom
cotton, silk, nylon, synthetic fiber, pigment, thread
30" x 53" x 5"
1993
Passageways, Passageways—Anatomy of an Heirloom DETAIL
Passageways, Passageways—Anatomy of an Heirloom DETAIL
Sicilian Socks—The Sacred and Profane
rayon, synthetic fiber, pigment, wood / dye
63" x 80" x 3"
1992
Sicilian Socks—The Sacred and Profane DETAIL
Damiana’s Cloth
rayon, silk, thread
22" x 25" x2.5"
1992
Untapped
cotton, wood, rope, pigment, thread
30" x 33" x 8"
1993
Untapped DETAIL