Featured Artist Susan Detroy | Artsy Shark

Enjoy the fascinating portfolio of artist Susan Detroy, who blends self-portraiture with layered digital abstraction. Visit her website to see more.

I’m a lifelong artist. I grew up in the midwest, where I studied Spanish and dance in grade school and high school. As a high school and university language student I traveled to Mexico and Spain. Dance introduced me to the transformative nature of art.

Traveling to other countries opened me to a larger view of the world. As a young adult, I moved to Oregon, following my ideals of community, establishing a food coop and learning martial arts. In Oregon I found my place in a media collective. There I worked communally and produced photographic images with a second hand Yashica camera medium format camera.

This time period was the beginning of my visual art life journey, opening a window to the world of photography. I practiced as a self-taught photographer, then attended University of Oregon and Lane Community College. Studying technique and history woke me up to an expanded art landscape, providing new methods for creating and ways to share what I made.

I produced work based in historic photographic printmaking and created with black and white Infrared film. For 30 years I ran a commercial photography business and worked as a gallery art consultant. These experiences solidified and informed the art I produce including ten art series. These years serve as the basis for the digital work I create now.

My largest body of work is my eleven year legacy project Portrait of a Woman, originating from my initial internalized negative reaction to aging. Since 2015, I have built artworks using my self portrait.

In the majority of the pieces, I begin by photographing my face, using an iPhone camera app, Blackie, which mimics black and white film types. I blend and meld the self portrait with my photographs of natural elements. The changes in my face are intertwined with leaves, sky, forest, and flowers. I use digital apps, such as iColorama, Panographic and Snapseed.

In recent years in a similar vein to my initial decision to change from a patriarchal oppressed response, I am fabricating pieces integrating my emotional experience to current world events. I feel affected by inhumane behavior and wish to align myself with others in mentioning my experience and find mutual understanding.

Throughout my career I have shown artwork in person, locally in Oregon, in the US and internationally. Exhibit highlights are honorable mention in the Julia Cameron Award to Women Photographers for Self Portrait Series and inclusion in the NW Artist Biennial at the Umpqua Valley Arts. Through my connections with international artists I am now showing globally, in countries, such as Korea and Uzbekistan.

My intention is to present a new way of envisioning aging women. I wish to alter the way we look at the changing female face. With my pieces I introduce a stronger, more expanded view of a woman’s face, while providing artworks to contemplate the long held unhappy and oppressive ideas. I give to the world a new, refreshed version of aging.

Susan Detroy invites you to follow on Facebook and Instagram.

Want to stay current on cutting edge business articles from Artsy Shark, plus artist features, and an invitation to the next Call for Artists? Click below to sign up for our twice-monthly email. You’ll get all this plus opportunities and special offers that you can’t get anywhere else!