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By: CELIA WREN | Special correspondent
Published: September 11, 2011
Richmond artist Susan Singer revels in painting the truth — and she doesn't care what Madison Avenue thinks. "The form that we see on models and in the media is, for most people, not achievable: Most of us cannot be 6 feet tall and 110 pounds," the 51-year-old says as she sits in her Richmond studio, surrounded by canvases of scarred, tattooed and comfortably curvaceous female nudes. These images — which will be on view in the upcoming exhibit "Not Barbie: A Celebration of Real Women," at Crossroads Art Center Sept. 16 through Nov. 7 — are Singer's retort to modern culture's veneration of stick-thin, porcelain-complexioned waifs. In her view, it's a joyous retort. "I'm trying, in my work, to give women and men a picture of what real women look like so that they can see the beauty of these women" and the women's "glorious personalities," Singer says. To reinforce her point, she indicates a painting in which a lithe black woman serenely and confidently straddles a chair, and another, in which a Rubenesque blonde vamps exuberantly in a broad-brimmed purple hat. Daring honesty about the human form is a signature tactic for Singer, a central Virginia native who studied German as an undergraduate at the College of William and Mary, and later enrolled in the Masters of Interdisciplinary Studies program at Virginia Commonwealth University. A longtime professional high school tutor, she first felt artistic yearnings when she was introduced to polymer clay at a friend's house in the late 1990s: Singer soon was turning the sculptable material into jewelry, candleholders and other objets d'art. But the clay molding began to hurt her hands, and in 1999, she experimented with drawings based on photographs that had been taken of her while she was pregnant. She is married to Chris Payton, a writer, and has three children, ages 19, 22 and 24, from a previous marriage. "Once I drew them, I was so excited," she says. "It felt so good to draw my pregnant form and think again about my children and giving birth." She was so inspired that she started to make drawings based on photos of pregnant friends. When a sketch nabbed a prize at the Shockoe Bottom Arts Center, her life seemed to gain a new direction. "I thought, 'Oh, this is a sign! This means I'm supposed to do art!' " * * * * * Her next major endeavors included a scar series, inspired by the sight of the stitched-up back of her younger son, who was recuperating from an operation, and "Twelve Naked Men," neck-to-thigh depictions of men. Singer remembers the strong reactions to "Twelve Naked Men," which appeared at Richmond's Visual Art Studio: Viewers were disturbed, fascinated and moved. "That series made me realize that there's so much pain and story and longing and desire and hurt and craving in our bodies," she says. After hiring an architect to build a studio in her backyard, Singer felt able to tackle a series of female nudes. Initially, she intended to portray the bodies but not the faces of her subjects, as she had with the models for "Twelve Naked Men." But she found that the women tended to adopt poses and expressions so temperament-rich that they cried out for fuller renderings. Before embarking on each canvas, Singer asks her female models "what they want to get out of the session: how they want to feel, what part of themselves they want to evoke." To help the women feel less awkward, she sometimes has music playing in the studio. When a model is omfortable, Singer takes photos, which are the basis for the paintings. Karen Morris, a massage therapist who modeled for one of the works in "Not Barbie," says the experience was "mind-blowing." "It was scary — putting myself out there, making myself vulnerable," Morris says, but "I can't even explain how liberating the experience was." As a one-time victim of an eating disorder who knows how destructive unrealistic body ideals can be, Morris feels that "Not Barbie" has considerable social significance. "If you were to talk to 10 people, nine of them are going to think they're not pretty enough to pose" for a picture. "Whereas, actually, 10 out of 10 are pretty enough." Morris' perspective is reflected in the programs that Singer has organized to broaden and deepen the impact of the exhibit. On Thursdays from Sept. 22 through Nov. 3, Crossroads will host performances and lectures that resonate with Singer's paintings and with the life stories of her models. Among other offerings, Kathleen MacDonald, an expert on eating disorders, will speak; and singer Gaye Adegbalola, the model for one "Not Barbie" painting, willheadline an evening of blues music. * * * * * Crossroads owner Jenni Kirby says this is the first time the center has hosted such extensive programming surrounding an exhibit. But she's a longtime fan of Singer's work. "She's just amazing when it comes to capturing a person's essence," Kirby says, and because Singer supports raising awareness about the thorny issue of body image. "It's something that needs to be addressed, and this is going to be a good way for the arts to address it," Kirby says. Singer aspires to give "Not Barbie" a life beyond the Crossroads run, perhaps by touring colleges. "It's so painful to me to hear women talk about how much they hate their bodies and how they want to look different," she says. She hopes her paintings will encourage women to see "that their own bodies are beautiful." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Naked Truth Susan Singer's "Not Barbie" lets it all hang out at Crossroads Arts Center. 
by Julie Geen published Sept 13, 2011 in Style Weekly Some of the most interesting women in town have disrobed for artist and activist Susan Singer. Her "Not Barbie," a series of more than 50 drawings and paintings, reveals the bodies of typical women in straightforward poses. "I do this so we have other images to combat our inner voices," Singer says. "People who see my artwork see naked women of all ages and sizes. They're going to see bellies, age spots, moles, scars. Real women. Then they've got a wider range of what's normal." Her subjects include females from all races and walks of life, including survivors of trauma. One woman commissioned a portrait by Singer after being shot by her husband and left for dead, the scar still livid red across her belly in the painting of her in her husband's white shirt. Karen Morris, a board certified massage therapist and eating disorder activist, commissioned a Singer portrait celebrating recovery from a 30-year battle with anorexia and bulimia. "I had to really debate with myself over whether this was the right fit for me," Morris has written. "I am, after all, a mother, wife, sister, daughter, friend and professional who lives in this crazy judgmental society." She found the process of being photographed and then painted by Singer transformative. "Never again will I judge myself so harshly," she writes. The most surprising thing to the artist is the resistance she faces when trying to show her work. "There are a lot of places in Richmond that won't show nudes," she says. "I tried to get my catalog printed for a show and a week or 10 days later they got back to me and said we don't print porn." Jenni Kirby, owner of Crossroads Art Center, says she's lost bookings for receptions and banquets as a result of the "Not Barbie" exhibit. "When we tell them the show in there is all nudes, they ask if we can take them down," Kirby says. "I tell them no, the show has to hang. It's been quite interesting to see that response when I didn't even think anything about it." When Singer's portrait, "Woman in Hat," showed at Crossroads previously, it got more feedback than any piece of art ever shown in the space. "There were many people who were hotly offended," the artist recounts. Her painting features a frontal view of a curvy woman in nothing but a large hat that dips down over her face. Kirby, who's also posed for Singer, hasn't backed down. "My running line with people who don't like it is please make sure you don't go to the Louvre because you're going to see a lot of nudes in there." A former Fulbright scholar and a high-school tutor for 23 years, Singer is concurrently organizing "Beyond Barbie: Piecing Together Today's Woman," a series of talks and performances at Crossroads starting Sept. 22 (This writer will be participating in a Nov. 3 event, "Women's Stories Uncovered.") The inspiration came when Singer realized how many of her models were fellow artists and community leaders. "So many of my models are talented," she says, "and I thought it would be cool to showcase them." Subjects for the series include surviving abuse, eating disorders and dance, to name a few. A dance night, set for Sept. 22, will include a performance by 91-year-old Frances Wessells, founder of VCU Dance, who sat for the artist at age 89. "The Blues: Liberation, Empowerment, and Joy!" scheduled for Oct. 6, is an evening of music featuring a performance by singer Gaye Adegbalola, founding member of Saffire — the Uppity Blues Women. Singer, who struggled with her own body image while she entered middle age, ended up painting her own body, feeling it was only right to go through the process so bravely faced by her models. "We all do art to heal ourselves," Singer says. "So of course it's very, very personal. Many of my models have had the experience of shifting how they feel about themselves through modeling for me. That's pretty significant." S "Not Barbie" opens Sept. 16 at Crossroads Art Center, 2016 Staples Mill Road, with an artist's talk at 5:30 p.m. For information on "Beyond Barbie," the series of lectures and events, call 278-8950 or go to susansinger.com. (This article has been corrected from the print edition.)
Exhibit Reveals More Than Just SkinBy: Alix Bryan
Published: September 21, 2011 The opening sequence of the popular show "Mad Men" declares that Madison Ave. is “Where the Truth Lies.”
The paintbrush of Richmond artist Susan Singer strokes at a deeper truth; that the concept of a “perfect” woman is not a one-size fits all. Rather, beauty is drawn from a woman’s courage, authenticity, pursuits and personal stories—whether grim or grand.
Perhaps nudity is the best canvas with which to foster vulnerability, pride and courage. Perhaps in the discarding of clothes, of facades—less becomes more.
The female nudes in Singer’s new show “Not Barbie: A Celebration of Real Women," represent stories of birth, aging, pregnancy, middle age, scars, body modifications, and many other topics. Singer has been depicting nudes since she started painting in 1999. She said that each series of work is a reflection of issues facing her in her own life, vis-à-vis her own body. “I needed to come to love my body as it was when I was pregnant,” Singer said. “Then I needed to come to terms with scars my two sons had gotten from two life-saving operations that left me reeling from the preciousness and fragility of their lives.” For instance, the series “Twelve Naked Men” was an emotional reaction to the “objectification of women by the media.” “’Not Barbie’ is my way of showing how gorgeous women are - all women - no matter their size, shape, age, or race,” Singer said. “The women I have painted are open, honest, and authentic and exceedingly courageous, allowing me to paint them naked for all to see.” Read Celia Wren’s review of the exhibit in the Richmond-Times Dispatch.
The show extends beyond the canvas with “Beyond Barbie: Piecing Together Today's Woman,” a series of seven performances and talks about issues important to women.
Each Thursday evening event will frame and explore a new topic, facilitated by experts, activists, speakers and writers in a safe space. Many of the presenters have modeled for Singer, and are in the show “Not Barbie.”
The series runs Sept. 22 thru Nov. 3, from 7-9 p.m., at the Crossroads Art Center. Tickets can be purchased the night of, or prior to the event and also online.
The scheduled talks are detailed below.
Thursday, September 22nd
Strength in Motion: Dancing our Sacred Bodies
Explore different styles of dance with a host of teachers, including Frances Wessells of Virginia Commonwealth University, Peggy O'Neill, Dawn Flores, and Khalima of Illumination Dance Studio. Dance styles range from bellydance to hoop dance to improvisation
Examines how dance serves as a performance art, and also has healing, spiritual, and strengthening qualities.
Thursday, September 29th
Body of work: Piercing and Painting our Personal Masterpiece
Women intentionally modify their bodies through body art, adornment, and other methods. There will be a discussion on these practices as personal growth and expression versus self-harm. Experts in body modification, like Kim Sikorsky and Rachel Easter, will share their thoughts and experiences.
Thursday, October 6th, 2011
The Blues: Liberation, Empowerment, and Joy
Ana Rivera-Poland will open, followed by singer, composer, storyteller and activist Gaye Adegbalola. Adegbaloa has been making music for years, to much fanfare and strong reviews. Thursday, October 13, 2011
Through the Fire: Reclaiming Lost Power After Trauma & Abuse
Award-winning storytellers Linda Goodman and Megan Hicks will lead a cast of artists who will explore stories of rape, abuse and violence.
Through the transformative power of art, these women will show how to process, rise above and glean wisdom from life's most unwanted and painful lessons.
There will be a question and answer, and there will be community resources, information and advice on hand.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Caught in a Funhouse Mirror: Distorted Reflections and Eating Disorders
Guest will be nationally known speaker Kathleen MacDonald, who lobbys on behalf of people with eating disorders.
The evening will provide a real glimpse into body image. Whether you, a friend, or family member has been personally affected or you simply want to hear women talk about their lives in a way that is true and real, this night will be powerful.
MacDonald will share a thoroughly personal account of her own struggle with eating disorders, and provide listeners with hope, local and national resources, and practical advice.
A panel of local experts and survivors will also be present to answer questions.
Thursday, October 27th
Listening and Observing: The Power of Birth in Story
Women will share personal experiences birth experiences. The evening will provide an opportunity for to better understand how birth shapes and is shaped by self-perceptions, experiences, and culture.
Thursday, November 3
Life in the First Person: Women's Stories Uncovered
This is the grand finale in the event series, "Beyond Barbie."
An evening of mixed-genre storytelling, reading, and performance art via poetry and prose with seven renowned Richmond writers.
Writers:
Gigi Amateau, novelist
Denise Bennett, storyteller
Tarfia Faizullah, poet
Julie Geen, freelance writer
Shelia Gray, performance artist
Valley Haggard, creative nonfiction writer
Alex Iwashyna, blogger.
Karen Morris had never spoken to such a large group of people about
her history with eating disorders. Over the past year, she had
participated in a few lobby efforts on the state and federal level to
encourage government to make eating disorders a public health priority,
meeting in small groups with elected officials or their staff. Karen and
I met in January at one such event, when we both attended the Virginia
General Assembly lobby effort with the National Eating Disorders
Association. The effort was successful; Virginia will soon be the first
state in the US to study eating disorder prevalence and the cost of
eating disorders to the state (you can read the bill Senator Puller
introduced here).
While undoubtedly a victory, there's still much work to be done.
Eating disorders currently have the highest mortality rate out of any
mental health disorder – upwards of 20%. If that statistic upsets you,
it should. Eating disorders are preventable, and effective treatment
exists. The fact that anyone is dying from a preventable disease is
problematic, let alone in such high numbers. One of the many reasons
this is the case has to do with social stigma. The average person
doesn't know much about eating disorders, and what little they do know
is often influenced by sensationalized media coverage. The ideas that an
eating disorder is a disease of vanity, a choice, or strictly a woman's
disease all play a role. In a country where dieting is normalized,
combined with our culture's misplaced correlation of health and
thinness, it's no wonder the early signs of an eating disorder can be
missed.
Enter Richmond artist Susan Singer,
who has spent the past two years painting nude portraits of women of
all shapes and sizes. Since September, she's had weekly art shows at
Crossroads Art Gallery with a different theme each week, such as body
modification, birth stories, surviving domestic/sexual assault, and of
course, eating disorders.
Nudes? In an art gallery? Oh my!
Susan truly has painted a diverse group of women in all shapes,
sizes, and colors. Through the paintings, something really incredible
happens. So much time is spent critiquing our bodies and identifying
supposed "imperfections" that we usually don't stop to appreciate
anything we actually like about our bodies (what a concept!). Put onto
canvas, though, the very idea of imperfections vanishes, and we're left
with the stunning and unavoidable reality of the beauty that is the
human (and, in this particular case, female) body.
This realization was a huge part of Karen's recovery. She was friends
with Susan and knew of this project, and called her up one day and
said, "I want you to paint me nude." Just making this request to her
friend was monumental, as she was less than three years into her
personal recovery. Prior to this, Karen had spent nearly 30 years
embattled with her eating disorder. Everything changed when she made a
comment to her then-17 year old daughter concerning the amount she was
(or, more accurately, wasn't) eating.
Her daughter spun on her heel, and told her point blank that she
needed to get her own eating issues sorted out before she tried to speak
to anyone about theirs. After somehow hiding her disordered eating from
most of her family her entire life, she wasn't prepared to be called
out in such plain terms. It would be another six months until she
admitted she actually had a problem and needed help.
Susan Singer next to one of her paintings.
That's why the painting was such a big deal. The original intention
was to create a painting without her face, just her body. Out of all the
photos Susan took to decide on one to paint (some of her models were
photographed over 300 times), the one they liked best included Karen's
face. Despite her apprehension, Karen agreed, and upon seeing the
finished work, she was completely awestruck by what was on the canvas.
After 30 years of hating her body and trying to manipulate it into being
the way she thought it should be, she was granted a view of herself not
through a mirror, but through an artist's eye and paintbrush. This
opportunity to see herself through someone else's eyes was cathartic,
and helped her develop a further sense of self-love and positive body
image she never thought possible.
It seemed a natural fit, then, for Karen's story and painting to be
the focus of one of the art shows. Speaking to a crowd of over 100
people, Karen opened the event by talking about her recovery and the
role Susan's art has played in her self-acceptance and new-found
positive body image, describing it as almost going through puberty
again. Karen now works as a massage therapist in the very same clinic as
her eating disorder treatment team, specializing in working with
clients who have had traumatic experiences that have disrupted their
relationship with their bodies, from eating disorders to sexual abuse.
Karen speaks about her unique therapeutic approach as a method to help
people live in both their mind and body, saying that often survivors
will reach a healthy place managing their emotions and behaviors but
still have a lot of issues and anxiety concerning their bodies – a
disparity her practice strives to mend.
Karen and I now serve on the Junior Board for the Eating Disorders Coalition
(EDC), a grassroots organization that has worked for over a decade to
achieve parity for eating disorders through lobby work and other methods
to help hold insurance companies accountable. Most people don't realize
that specialized eating disorder treatment can be so expensive – an
inpatient facility can cost anywhere from $1,500 to $3,000 per day.
Given the cost of treatment, insurance companies will make every excuse
they can to avoid paying for treatment, often with fatal results. EDC
board member Kitty Westin, whose daughter Anna died from anorexia after
being denied coverage in 2000, successfully sued her insurance company
for wrongful death (you can read more about Anna Westin here). More recently, lawyer Lisa Kantor won a case
for a client in California who was also denied treatment. While these
victories do help create precedent, real change will come on the federal
level, which is still gaining momentum. To help with this cause, all
proceeds from the show on October 22 went to the Eating Disorders
Coalition.
There were two other presenters in addition to Karen: Rachael Laura
Stern of the Eating Disorders Activist Network and Kathleen MacDonald of
the EDC & FREED Foundation. Both shared about their experiences
with eating disorders and their recovery. It would be very difficult to
summarize both talks, but they were both fantastic. This was the first
time I'd ever heard Rachael speak, and I was very moved by her story and
attitude. Concerned by how quickly she was growing as an infant, her
parents and doctor put her on her first diet at only six months old. Her
adolescence was spent focused on watching her weight, going to see
dieticians, and exercise programs. This overt concern over her body
image and weight contributed to what became a full-blown eating
disorder. Her story is a perfect example of how subscribing to societal
constructs of body image and beauty, instead of focusing on health and
being comfortable in your own genes, can contribute to disordered eating
behavior.
I've heard Kathleen speak quite a few times before, but this was
probably my favorite talk I've heard her give. At one point, she asked
the audience (which, given the focus of the show on women's bodies, was
about 99% female) if they had ever wanted or attempted to change certain
parts of their bodies.
Most, if not all, raised their hands.
Then she asked what people had tried to change. Random voices from the crowd called out:
"My arms!"
"My thighs!"
"My feet!"
"Boobs!"
After seemingly every part of the body had been called out by various audience members, she asked another question:
"What have those attempts to change your body brought you?" A silence
fell over the crowd. Someone called out, "Unhappiness." Then another:
"Misery and self-hatred." Kathleen spoke awhile about how it isn't
necessary to conform to societal standards of beauty and how she learned
to appreciate herself without comparing herself to anyone else.
She made one final point that really resonated with me: that if any of
us lost the various body parts that had been called out through some
tragedy, be it a foot, arm, or leg, we'd suddenly wish we had them back
and have a newfound appreciation for them. It reminded me of something I
read from Thich Nhat Hanh, where he was talking about how people in
general spend so much time thinking about what they don't have that they
never stop to appreciate all that is right in their lives. He used the
analogy of healthy teeth: no one stops to think how happy they are to
not have any toothaches, but once a tooth starts hurting, all we can
think about is how much we wish we could return to the state of not
being in pain. He concludes: "A non-toothache is a very good thing to
have."
Too much love to put into words: (from L to R) Karen Morris, Kathleen MacDonald, Rachael Stern, and myself after the event.
The final art show in Susan Singer's 'Beyond Barbie' series is
Thursday, November 3 at Crossroads Art Gallery. You can purchase tickets
online here.
Matt Wetsel is a Richmond-based writer and eating disorder advocate. You can follow him at his blog, …Until Eating Disorders Are No More. For more on Karen Morris, visit www.akarentouch.info.
http://rvamag.com/articles/full/12902/beyond-barbie-caught-in-a-fun-house-mirrorTatjana Beylotte, juror of Connections at Fredericksburg Center for the Creative Arts, upon giving Susan Singer 2nd place for her piece Connect ed:I felt a genuine connection to the works I chose for the awards and not only because that's the theme of the exhibition. They resonated with me on an intuitive and emotional level. I felt truly engaged by these artists' work... I really appreciate Susan Singer's piece Connected. It's refreshing to see her use of perspective - what she chose to focus on. I also find her use of light and composition very successful in this painting. Circular Reasoning: Artspace Gallery C overs Ground with Radius250June 25, 2009by Bird Cox A 250-mile radius... hm. That takes in D.C., Baltimore, Philly, parts of West Virginia, parts of North Caroline, Delaware. It's a pretty serious call to artists, and it shows: Artspace's open-armed exhibit has grown larger and more popular (not to mention more competitive) this year, filling its multi-roomed Plant Zero locale wtih choice 2D and 3D pieces, digital work, and video. Friday's public opening reception, from 7-10 PM, comes on the heels of the previous hour's awards ceremony, so you might run across an individual doing a little I-just-won-a-thousand-bucks dance. The winners will be decided upon by Marlene Rothacker, Director of Ehibitions at International Arts and Artists in D.C. There's no thematic direction for the show - the only requisite is that it was created wtihin that 250 mile mark - so you'll get to see a full range of contemporary works from the mid-Atlantic. Ever wanted to flesh out an idea of what it means to be an artist these days? This is an ideal opportunity. I snatched a sneak peek at what we're in for via Artspace's Picasa page and from scrutinizing the thumbnails, I'll be looking for: Susan Singer's Grace. There are naked magazine beauties, and there are naked art beauties. Singer celebrates the real body, no touch-ups, no mental airbrushing - "healthy, scarred, thin, heavy, male, female, young, old... all bodies are beautiful and worthy of veneration." I like that, with the velvety accuracy of her oils, she convinces us to admire that cellulitic behind.
A model who was pregnant when photographed writes:
 Thanks for your amazing work. I feel privileged to be a part of it.
I think of this painting as capturing a moment of time that is still in me - the ongoing moments of creation - of birthing, of watching [my son] become who he is - the painting reminds me of the spirit and soul of what I'm doing as a mother and woman which is so helpful between the moments of laundry, food, playing, fighting, and being.
Feb 22, 2009 Click on the link above to see the actual talk on YouTube.
By Madelyn Miller, the TravelLadyOn a rainy afternoon, I was walking through the newly trendy area of Richmond’s Downtown Arts District. Suddenly I was immersed into Susan Singer’s world of male nudes. I am not complaining. I loved them. (Figuratively) Twelve Naked Men was displayed in-the-round at Visual Art Studio, creating for the willing viewer an inescapable confrontation with images of frontal nude male torsos from neck to thigh.  They are photo-realistically rendered in bold pastels, and shine a graphic, merciless spotlight on the subjects’ bodies, just as they are. The headless bodies beg comparison with objectified, popular depictions of female super-models, but Singer does not just draw beautiful men; some of her subjects are aging or overweight or scarred. The pieces confront us with our feelings about male bodies, nudity, society’s view of the ideal body, and the definition of pornography. Susan Singer’s Twelve Naked Men presents to us not only the male body, but also our contrary, troubling, healthy, conflicted attitudes towards it. I ASKED SUSAN SINGER WHY SHE LIKED TO DRAW NUDE MEN (for more, go to http://www.travellady.com/Issues/March05/1281NakedMen.htm) Photojournal Intime: the aim is to be open-minded and to consider more off-beat and challenging representations of the human form, including the male body. By Aidan O’Rourke Editor / Author Dublin 9 June 2007 The series 12 Naked Men by artist Susan Singer focuses attention on the male body, not just young and idealised but middle aged and not so slim. I was intrigued as to why a woman would want to depict the naked male body, a subject that has a much lower status than the female, and which most women appear to show little interest in. If the male nude is depicted at all, then it's assumed to be in a gay male context. (...) Susan Singer’s pregnant nudes display a keen sensibility for form, texture and colour. The effect is quite different - and complimentary - to the naked male images. The intense use of colour accentuates the primeval aspect of pregnancy. Though the view is from outside, the intense crimson suggests what can be seen from inside the womb. (...) I too prefer the aesthetic qualities of the female body, but the way Susan Singer has depicted the male bodies I find to be positive and sympathetic. I find them more intense and aesthetically complex than her female images such as the pregnant nudes pictured above. I'm sure the subjects feel much more positive about themselves as a result of being depicted in this way. To see Susan Singer's Naked Men series, go to www.susansinger.com | |
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