About Suzanne
Baltimore County
Suzanne Coley is a 2023-2024 Folger Shakespeare Library Fellow and a 2023-2024 Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies Fellow. Her main artistic fields are printmaking, poetry, and book arts. She has pioneered the style of book making called "couture textile books," combining precision and intentionality of design with bold experimentation and abstraction. Over the past fifteen years, Suzanne has merged couture sewing techniques with embroidery and poetry in her art. Suzanne… more
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Selected Artworks 2002 - 2023
For more than twenty years, I've been creating art that seeks to bring healing and change by examining what it means to be human. My original poetry accompanied with paintings and innovative printmaking techniques have allowed me to explore human emotions of our time, and to capture human imperfections and strengths.
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Look In Thy GlassMixed media fiber arts, 6.5" x 9", 2019 - page from handmade textile book Look In Thy Glass
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365 Painted SongsPainted Songs: In 2015, I created a book a day. This is an image of the books from January 2015. ** All books measure 8.75 x 11.75 x .5 inches, have at least 20 pages, and no two are the same.
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Dreamsmixed media fiber arts, 22 x 25 x 1 inches, 2017
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Dreamsmixed media fiber arts (book), 14 x 11 x .5 inches (closed), 2017
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Mouthmixed media fiber arts,22 x 25 x 1 inches, 2017
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Mouthmixed media fiber arts (book), 22 x 25 x 1 inches (opened), 2017
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Hopemixed media unique book with matching clamshell box, 15 x 13 x 1 inches, 2016-2017
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Once Upon a Timemixed media fiber arts (book), 8.75 x 11.75 x .5 inches, 2015
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Supersonic Realitiesmixed media fiber arts, 8.75 x 11.75 x .5 inches, 2015
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CygnetsHandmade Textile book page, 2017
See Us
The fine vintage velvets and rare hand-loomed linens in See Us are innately tactile and relatable. The fabrics move and mold themselves in the hands of the reader. Even people who never or rarely work with paper will recognize the textures of fabric from their own experiences. It was important to preserve the history and story behind each piece of fabric while creating new stories. Please read more about the project in my blog.
Poetry for See Us
Doctors who crossed barbed wire borders
told me to write my story. Perhaps if others knew
what was going on here I . . . we would get help.
Help. Ease. Alleviate. Assuage.
I search for the right words with my limited
vocabulary. How do I say, "Take that 200lb
man off my 12 year old body without that
gun breaking my front teeth?"
How can anyone undo the damage.
Fix all of these broken bodies.
Revive souls already in Psychopomp's arms.
Palliate. Temper. Diminish
- Suzanne Coley
Poetry for See Us
Doctors who crossed barbed wire borders
told me to write my story. Perhaps if others knew
what was going on here I . . . we would get help.
Help. Ease. Alleviate. Assuage.
I search for the right words with my limited
vocabulary. How do I say, "Take that 200lb
man off my 12 year old body without that
gun breaking my front teeth?"
How can anyone undo the damage.
Fix all of these broken bodies.
Revive souls already in Psychopomp's arms.
Palliate. Temper. Diminish
- Suzanne Coley
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AssuageDoctors say 12 year old girls in America have birthday parties with lots of pink balloons . . .
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AssuageThey try to make us laugh and dance. mixed meida fiber arts, 16.5 x 25.5 x 2 inches, 2017
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Crossing Barbed Wire BordersI want to write about delicate butterflies.
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Crossing Barbed Wire BordersI want to write about lovely blue feathered parrots who live in the majestic Congo rainforest.
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Promethean BoundThe open sores are healing but the pain is still here.
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I CarryI carry too much weight and fall over with this balloon inside of me.
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MaskMy ankles can't bear the load. They made sandals from plastic water bottles and string.
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See Us, Soothemixed media fiber arts, 16.5 x 25.5 x 2 inches, 2017
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Blue Feathered ParrotsI want to write about delicate butterflies and lovely blue feathered parrots who live in the majestic Congo rainforest.
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Blue Feathered Parrots, detailI want to write about delicate butterflies and lovely blue feathered parrots . . .
Asymmetrical Zeal
Asymmetrical Zeal is part of a larger year-long project that was inspired by African textiles I received from the National Museum of African Art Library. One of the textiles I was given was beautiful, but couldn't be printed on. It resisted every paint, ink, stain, and dye. I was amazed at its durability and strength. During one of my visits to the museum I explained that I couldn't really work with the fabric, and it was different than anything I had ever seen. One of the curators told me that it had been woven with the thinnest strands of copper. Copper gave it its beautiful shine and made it tough.
With this in mind, I created Asymmetrical Zeal. I wanted to show the strength of the textiles. Please read my blog post for more information.
With this in mind, I created Asymmetrical Zeal. I wanted to show the strength of the textiles. Please read my blog post for more information.
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HammeringHammering metal sentiments into carved wooden statues.
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ArtemisArtemis: handprinted cotton textile page
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Asymmetrical Zeal, Coverwood, ink, polyurethane, 2017
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Forcing SpiritsForcing spirits past caged lines, across arid lands.
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Motherhood, detailMotherhood gives birth to new vulnerabilities.
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MotherhoodRapscallions stalk under thick sentimental canopies.
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Criss CrossSun scorched metallic hopes melt before dawn.
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Metallic HopesWinds howl fiercely
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EmotionsRemoving emotions from mass graves
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Gold Squaresletting them flow with the river's current.