Suzanne Ray

Frost Flake
Photo etching
image size 16” x 16”

Ice Fall, Moonrise
Pronto plate lithograph
image size 3.5” x 11.5”

Suzanne Ray

Bio

Suzanne graduated from the State University of New York College at Oswego, with a BFA in drawing, painting and printmaking and a minor in museum studies.  Her focus recently has been on photography and printmaking.  Her work has been exhibited at local sites such as Beaver Lake Nature Center, the Elbridge, Liverpool and Hazard Libraries, and with the Central New York Art Guild.  Her work was selected for the 2005 SUNY Student Art Exhibition in Albany and more recently she has exhibited at the Ink Shop Printmaking Center in Ithaca and the Smithy-Pioneer Gallery in Cooperstown.  Suzanne also graduated from the SUNY College at Cortland with a Master’s degree in Recreation and Leisure Studies and worked for 25 years in the field of municipal parks and recreation, most recently as Director of Parks and Recreation for the City of Canandaigua. 

Statement

In this world with so much technology, violence and dissonance, I find refuge in nature, in the beauty of plants and animals, their movements and behavior and the simple lessons they have for us.  I enjoy sharing these fleeting images and the feelings of peace and comfort they provide.  Natural forms, whether animal, plant or human, are the basis for my work.  I capture these forms in photographs and then distill their images to represent the essence of their form.  I manipulate and then print them in various designs and layers.  I like to play with the context, color, texture and composition of these images in an attempt to connect with the viewer, sometimes in a playful manner.  I like to think of art as recreation, not only in the sense of re-creating a concept, but as play, something to be enjoyed both in the creating and in the sharing.