Susan Shantz: creatures in translation

Additional Information

creatures in translation is a solo exhibition of new sculptures and prints by Saskatoon-based artist Susan Shantz. For this work, the artist uses three-dimensional modeling software and a haptic tool to simulate the process of sculpting clay, recreating Japanese Banko Ware ceramics from the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria’s permanent collection in two and three-dimensional forms of varying sizes. In her own words, this process questions "the ubiquitous manufactured versions of nature in our culture," while focusing on the ways that virtual representations of art and artifacts generate a loss of cultural information.

Susan Shantz graduated with a Master of Fine Arts from York University in 1989 and currently teaches sculpture and mixed media in the Department of Art and Art History at the University of Saskatchewan. Her work has been featured in public and artist-run galleries across Canada, including exhibitions at the Mendel Art Gallery in Saskatoon, the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, Definitely Superior in Thunder Bay, and Galerie Articule in Montreal. Her work is in numerous public holdings including the Saskatchewan Arts Board, the Canada Council Art Bank, the MacKenzie Art Gallery, and the Burlington Cultural Centre.

Susan Shantz, creatures in translation (Installation View), 2012.