Vivian Suter
Photo: Flavio Karrer
Vivian Suter
Argentina born 1949, lives and works Panajachel, Guatemala
Level 2
NGV International
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PROJECT
In 2005, Argentinian-Swiss artist Vivian Suter shifted her practice irrevocably when her studio, located in a remote tropical region in Panajachel, Guatemala, was overrun by a mudslide. Suter has been influenced by nature since moving to Guatemala in 1982, but seeing the dried mud and silt mingle with her paints, she began to actively work with nature as a collaborator and source of knowledge. The artist routinely works and leaves canvases outdoors to bring together human-made materials and gestures with nature. Embodying the notion that everything is connected, Suter considers all she creates one work, leaving canvases untitled, undated and unsigned. For each installation of her work, Suter intuitively selects canvases and arranges them in response to the space, echoing the layering of time and matter.
ABOUT
Vivian Suter was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina; studied in Basel, Switzerland; and currently lives and works in Panajachel, Guatemala. Suter’s work draws inspiration from Abstract Expressionism, Colour Field, and most significantly, nature. Solo exhibitions of the artist’s work have been held at numerous international institutions, including: Kunstmuseum Luzern; Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid; Brücke Museum, Berlin; Camden Arts Centre, London; Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston; Tate Liverpool; MUDAM, Luxembourg; the Power Plant, Toronto; Art Institute of Chicago; Jewish Museum, New York; Kunsthalle Basel; Kunstmuseum Olten, Switzerland; and Kunstmuseum des Kantons Thurgau, Kartause Ittingen, Switzerland.
Courtesy of the artist and Gladstone Gallery, New York, Brussels and Seoul; House of Gaga, Mexico, D.F.; Karma International, Zurich; and Proyectos Ultravioleta, Guatemala