Susan Shoemaker – The WTF Show! Recent work & WTF animal facts

This exhibition round includes works provided by Susan Shoemaker which will be on view in the Third Floor West Gallery from July 31 – September 28, 2024.  Lowe Mill A&E invites patrons and art lovers to join us for Open Studio Night, a building-wide experience when our over 150 studios will be open to the public.  The evening also includes receptions for all seven of our gallery spaces. This series gives the public a chance to meet and interact with visiting artists and discuss their work as it is on display and available for purchase. Come out, enjoy a pleasant evening, and maybe you’ll find that special piece of art that speaks to you!  The Open Studio Night reception is Saturday, September 28 from 5-7 pm.

 

About the exhibit:

Animals are fascinating and even if you think you know all there is to know, you can still be surprised. My work has focused on animals for decades. Why? Maybe I’d rather hang out with animals than with people sometimes. Ok, maybe most of the time….

From my earliest memories, animals have been a part of my daily life.  The family dog, an unwisely purchased rabbit (not by me), a pet rat from a girl that lived in my dorm, a re-homed hedgehog that never liked us, various reptiles that my former zoo keeper husband ended up with, and today there is a mix of rescued cats and dogs living rent free in my home.  If you dig a little deeper, I’ve also had some experiences that had big impacts on making me care about animals – but that’s a different story for a different show.

The WTF Show includes my most recent work and this time I’ve included some WTF facts about these creatures.  From the common backyard visitor to an elusive underground dweller, I want to learn everything about all of them. This collection was inspired by animals I’ve been able to encounter in my daily suburban life, ones I’ve visited at animal encounters and zoos, and the specimens at the multiple natural history museums I’ve walked around in for hours.  I’ll never stop being amazed by the inhabitants of our planet.  Not the humans, the animals.

Enjoy!

 

About the artist:

Artist Susan Shoemaker is a native of Birmingham, Al and received her BFA from the University of Montevallo. Although she studied Printmaking in school, once she left UM she found herself as a printmaker without a press, and returned to her first love of drawing as a way of making art. This led to her creating a studio called, “pencilpress”.

When asked about her work, Shoemaker says she finds inspiration from nature and tries to combine her concern for wildlife conservation with a little bit of humor.

“Using animals as my primary focus in art can be tricky & I am always looking to find the balance between straightforward representation and having a sense of humor about myself and about my work. My goal is that the animals are well represented, funny when intended, and always portrayed in an interesting way.”

 

To find the the gallery in Lowe Mill A&E, click MORE INFO below (Tickets are NOT required.)