Suzanne Fiol “Ten Years Alive”
Issue Project Room
[Image: Suzanne Fiol "Self Portrait with Apple" (1995)]
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ISSUE Project Room presents Suzanne Fiol: Ten Years Alive, an exhibition of mixed media work from ISSUE’s late founder Suzanne Fiol. In addition to her leadership role in the performing arts, Fiol was a respected photographer and visual artist. During the 1990s and early 2000s, Fiol created large-scale photo collages, which she then layered with paint to expressively expand the images’ latent emotions.
ISSUE showcases a selection of these works, viewable during a series of related public performances at ISSUE’s 22 Boerum Place Theater. Organized in collaboration with Suzanne’s daughter, Sarah Fiol, the exhibition features original works that incorporates paint superimposed on photographs, exploring the territories of love, relationships, identity, sexuality, and motherhood.
In the year prior to her death and while recovering from cancer treatments, Suzanne passionately led ISSUE’s campaign to secure the Boerum Theater for the purpose of providing a platform for the experimental art community to present innovative work and expand the boundaries of art. The planned exhibition celebrates Suzanne’s critical art practice and marks a decade since she passed (October 5th, 2009).
The exhibition runs until mid November, marking ten years since the office of the Borough President Marty Markowitz issued a proclamation officially declaring November 15th “Suzanne Fiol Day in Brooklyn, USA.” Borough President officials presented the proclamation in 2009 following a memorial service in Suzanne’s honor, with the announcement taking place just before the symbolic parade that departed St. Ann’s Church and continued past the 22 Boerum Theater before ending at ISSUE’s previous home at the Old American Can Factory for a celebratory concert.
“Birth comes in many forms. Some women give birth to human life. Some women birth intellectual, artistic and spiritual gifts for humankind. And some do both, sharing in different ways […] Through their work and their example, these women have not only planted new seeds of knowledge and aesthetic vision in our culture; they have also created a legacy that infuses others with the courage to bring forth their own gifts.” — Suzanne Fiol, Mothers of Creation.
Throughout her artistic career and as Artistic Director of ISSUE, Suzanne advocated for art that blurred disciplines and pushed the boundaries of artistic practices. The exhibition and surrounding performances reflect upon the fully eclectic, precarious, joyful, and daring artistic legacy that late visionary founder Suzanne Fiol cultivated throughout her life. Suzanne brought artists from a wide array of disciplines together and encouraged spontaneous, fresh, and often unexpected programming, forming new trajectories and models for presenting experimental work. Always energized by Suzanne’s galvanizing approach, ISSUE’s Fall season celebrates 10 years since her advocacy secured 22 Boerum Place, with a vision to create one of New York City’s premiere destinations for the avant-garde performing arts.
Media
Schedule
from October 04, 2019 to November 16, 2019