Susan Kristoferson

Susan Kristoferson was a visual artist who created exquisite paper collages, suspended sculptures and intricate hand painted paste papers and hand dyed itajime papers. Her work in paper was based on extensive art education and decades of experience in many fine arts processes, in fibre arts, surface design, in hand papermaking techniques, and in the art histories of the world.

Susan found inspiration in observing the nuance of each day and how what is seen and experienced can shift and adjust from one period of time to the next. Each day can be like the previous day and, if not carefully observed, can seem like an exact repeat of what happened before. Yet days are never exactly the same; there are always differences and changes. For Susan, this philosophical perspective was at the fissure between the tangible and the intangible in life and is reflected in all of the artworks that she creates. As an artist Susan was visually intrigued with pattern-like images and groups of things.  

Susan created with paper because of its physical characteristics. It can be stiff yet pliable; it can absorb or repel dye; it can simultaneously be delicate and strong. It can be an object, can carry an image and can be an illusion. She experimented and undertook physical research into new variations of processes and with various colorants as a way of learning and finding unique imagery. Paper can be so many different things; it always yields something new.

Susan passed away in the summer of 2024, and will be greatly missed by us at Bluerock and in the local arts community.