Susan Metzger

Artist Statement

Historic architecture inspires my imagination, so when I starting doing artwork it reflected the buildings that I loved when I lived in Central America and the Caribbean. I took up batik as my media by accident when students in the school where I was teaching in St. Croix, U.S.V.I. wanted to do batik for an activity period, and I was the only teachers who had ever done any, and the fact that I hadn’t liked batik, didn’t stop their enthusiasm. So I spent a weekend brushing up on the craft, and I was converted.

I find batik is the perfect media to express the character of old architecture, especially buildings that are made of stone or stucco. The natural cracking that occurs in the wax while batiking reflects the wear and tear on old walls. It also provides an element of surprise when the piece is finished. 

And since the fabric is dyed, I have a choice of which side of the image I wish to frame. Sometimes I sandwich the batik between two pieces of Plexiglas so I can see both sides. Other times I fuse them to heavy acid-free paper or buckram so they can be framed like watercolors under glass. Recently I started enhancing and preserving them under a coating of encaustic wax.

I want my pieces to show the beauty of the old buildings in places that I have lived or traveled, using images and colors that I find pleasing and peaceful to the eye.