|
From childhood when her painting of California poppies won
a state contest, SUZANNE ETIENNE has been expressing her
passion for people and nature with bold strokes and vibrant colors.
After studying at San Jose State University, she worked as a commercial
artist and interior decorator, launched a school-based art program,
and explored a variety of media before landing her large-as-life
impressionist paintings in some of the finer galleries and design
firms in California.
- - - - - - - - - - - -
Ashland, Oregon
BEGINNINGS . . . . Artist Suzanne Etienne was born
with a paint brush in her hand -- her left hand. From the first
affirmation of her talent at age seven when she won a state poster
contest with her golden California poppy until today, Etienne has
used vibrant colors and bold strokes to distinguish her work.
"To be acknowledged at an early age," Etienne said, "set me on a
course as an artist." Realizing the power of the recognition afforded
her own work, Etienne enjoys discovering and affirming the talent
of others.
STUDIES, COMMERCIAL ART, DESIGN . . . . Studying fine art
at San Jose State University was followed by work as a commerical
artist and technical illustrator. When her children were young,
Etienne was horrified that no formal art program existed at their
school. To remedy the situation, she created one, believing "Art
provides an essential ingredient in developing humane humans." After
several years that put her art career on hold as she devoted herself
to raising a family, Etienne launched her own interior design firm,
Suzanne Etienne Design, in 1986.
Working as a decorator, Etienne became masterful at incorporating
colors from fabrics and wallpapers into her art. "I thrived on making
clients happy with colorful, textural, even humorous paintings that
lift the spirits. It was my way of making the world a more beautiful
place to be."
During her interior design days Etienne explored a variety of media
for her art creating hand-painted wooden screens, fire screens,
fabric, decorator pillows and clothing. Although her decorator's
eye still allows her to create custom paintings that are a perfect
addition to any interior, Etienne devotes full time to painting,
primarily on canvas and wood these days.
PHILOSOPHER & COMEDIAN . . . ."Art is both my passion
and my solace," Etienne says. "From the time I was coloring with
my 64-pack of Crayolas, I have seen art in whatever I'm doing. Art
doesn't just stop at the end of the canvas." Her ability to perceive
beauty everywhere helps Etienne interpret the good and bad of life
in her work. "Painting is my meditation, it's the creative, it's
the understanding beyond understanding," she says.
Despite her serious reflective nature, Etienne is known by all around
her as a playful comedian, a role she adopted early in life in "trying
to make everybody happy". In her recent art she has begun to enjoy
displaying her comic take on human nature and hopes to delve more
into that side of her personality in future endeavors.
TRAVEL & FAMILY . . . .Travel in the 90's inspired Etienne
to paint the rugged coastlines and lively spirit of Ireland, the
joyful street scenes of France, and the charm of contemporary Italy.
Currently Ms. Etienne's work is exhibited at Zantman Galleries ,
Carmel; Traditions in Menlo Park, Berkeley and Walnut Creek; and
McRae-Hinckley in San Francisco. Her work may also be viewed at
her Ashland studio by
appointment.
|
Etienne and her attorney husband have two adult children, a son
who works in a computer-technology related business, and daughter,
Nicole Etienne,
who is also an artist.
POPULARITY & HONORS . . . . Etienne's original acrylic
and watercolor paintings, murals, and ceramics, created in her seaside
California studio, enhance homes and businesses across the nation.
Her ever-growing popularity is evidenced by the fact that her work
has been sold to such well-known persons as Bette Davis, Christie
Brinkley, Linda Evans, Dudley Moore and Harry Belafonte. Etienne's
work is currently represented by galleries in Palo Alto, Carmel,
Santa Barbara and Palm Desert, California.
In 2000 Etienne was honored by being selected as the featured poster
artist for the Annual
Los Altos Rotary Art Show where she will exhibit her latest
work May 18 and 19, 2002.
THE ARTIST'S POINT OF VIEW . . . . 19th century French impressionist
artist Alfred Sisley has been quoted as saying of his art, "Every
picture shows a spot with which the artist himself has fallen in
love." The is certainly true of Etienne's work. With her passion
for gardens, flowers, seashores, architecture, interiors and children,
Etienne paints with a vitality that reflects a world she views full
of life and beauty.
Etienne's landscapes and still life work almost always have a human
presence. Even if people are absent, there is frequently something
. . . a hat, a book, a tea cup, that gives a sign of human activity.
For Suzanne Etienne, as for most impressionists, nature is primarily
a social experience. Her broken brushwork and prismatic colors convey
nature's mutability in canvases that sing with panoramic splendor.
You are invited to explore Ms. Etienne's
work arranged alphabetically in her catalog.
|
