Susan Szenes is a fantastic Toronto artist that I first discovered on a gallery crawl. For me her art invokes a whimsical feeling of childhood: child-like interpretations, perspectives and memories.

I’m reminded of returning to a familiar place a decade later to find that it’s not at all the way I remembered it. The place has stayed the same, but my point of view has changed.

Many of her paintings create a feeling of vastness. You can see it in these, below: small images of cars crossing large empty swaths of land.

Remember what seemed like long rides in the back seat of your parents car? Eyes below window level. Only the sky and skyline are visible. Everything is oversized. That’s the perspective I’m brought back to when I look at this piece. I always wondered what those crazy towers were.

Szenes uses found materials such as ceiling tiles, radiator covers, keys, shipping crates and painted wood remnants. Not only do these pieces add interesting textures, they also bring about a feeling of nostalgia and reminders of the past.

I think her pieces also comment on the connectedness of people. We are all connected… by roads, powerlines, airplanes, telephone lines, and more and more the internet. It is these connections that allow us to feel closer, no matter how physically far apart we may be.

The images of cars and roads also leave me thinking about our state of perpetual motion and change.

I am surprised how much these pieces have made my head spin in thought.

My photos can’t do her work justice; you should check out Susan’s work live.

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Toronto, mixed media, paintings, arts, canadian