Nanaka Suzuki

Senior Thesis Art Exhibition

Nanaka Suzuki
Slingerlands, NY

Nanaka Sazuki

10 Photo Slideshow
<div style="color:white; font-family: serif;">Nanaka Suzuki<br><em>April 11, 2005,</em> (Detail) 2020 <br>Charmeuse silk, gutta resist, jacquard silk dye<div> <div style="color:white; font-family: serif;">Nanaka Suzuki<br><em>April 11, 2005,</em> 2020, (Detail) <br>Charmeuse silk, gutta resist, jacquard silk dye<div> <div style="color:white; font-family: serif;">Nanaka Suzuki<br><em>April 11, 2005</em>, 2020 (Detail)<br>Charmeuse silk, gutta resist, jacquard silk dye<div> <div style="color:white; font-family: serif;">Nanaka Suzuki<br><em>April 11, 2005</em>, 2020 (Detail)<br>Charmeuse silk, gutta resist, jacquard silk dye<div> <div style="color:white; font-family: serif;">Nanaka Suzuki<br><em>April 11, 2005</em>, 2020 (Detail)<br>Charmeuse silk, gutta resist, jacquard silk dye<div> <div style="color:white; font-family: serif;">Nanaka Suzuki<br><em>Roots,</em> 2020 <br>Charmeuse silk, gutta resist, jacquard silk dye <br>40 x 29.5 in. (Frame) 33 x 23 in. (Silk)</div> <div style="color:white; font-family: serif;">Nanaka Suzuki <br><em>Black Eyeliner</em>, 2020 <br>Charmeuse silk, gutta resist, jacquard silk dye <br>40 x 29.5 in. (Frame) 33 x 23 in. (Silk)</div> <div style="color:white; font-family: serif;">Nanaka Suzuki <br><em>Black Eyeliner,</em> 2020 (Detail)<br>Charmeuse silk, gutta resist, jacquard silk dye <div> <div style="color:white; font-family: serif;">Nanaka Suzuki <br><em>Black Eyeliner,</em> 2020 (Detail)<br>Charmeuse silk, gutta resist, jacquard silk dye <div>

ARTIST STATEMENT

My work represents the beauty of change and fluidity, inspired by my experience moving from Japan to the United States at the age of seven. As a young Asian girl growing up in Upstate NY, the pressure to assimilate caused me to suppress my Japanese identity. The longer I spent surrounded by people who did not look like me, the more I became ashamed of being Asian, of my own culture, and of who I was. 

Drawing inspiration from traditional Japanese kimono iconographies, my silk paintings pay homage to an integral aspect of my identity that I had cast aside in the process of assimilation. The subtle symbolic references tell a story about a young girl from Kanagawa, Japan, embarking on a journey to find herself. My work is a celebration of change and the beauty of embracing our individual uniqueness in the process of becoming ourselves.

These works were made possible through the generosity of the Steven Daniel Smallen Memorial Fund.

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