Suzann Victor’s latest exhibition, Constellations, at STPI – Creative Workshop & Gallery, brings to life an innovative dialogue between light, shadow, and printmaking. Known for pushing the boundaries of contemporary art, Victor has always been one to challenge traditional art forms. Her new works explore the relationship between transparency, perception, and audience interaction, transforming the viewing experience into an active and immersive engagement.
Suzann Victor, The Image Stammers II, 2024, Glaze medium on acrylic discs, 143 x 141 x 41.5 cm.
© Suzann Victor / STPI. Photo courtesy of the artist and STPI - Creative Workshop & Gallery, Singapore.
Reflecting on her residency at STPI, Victor emphasizes the freedom she found in being unschooled in printmaking. “The ‘ignorance’ of being unschooled in this art form only translates into immense freedom,” she shares, noting how this uninhibited approach allowed her to experiment boldly with new methods and materials. This exploration led her to create unique works where paper became both a medium and a subject, with her previous solo exhibition introducing "liquid-paper-paint" compositions on transparent discs.
Interactive Art: Viewer as Co-Creator
In Constellations, Victor invites the audience to become active participants in the creation of the artwork. This is particularly evident in her Tension-Printing series, where viewers use torchlights to cast secondary light-prints on the gallery walls. “In doing this, the viewer dissolves the boundaries of the work,” says Victor, explaining that the interplay of light and shadow alters the size, shape, and form of the artwork with every movement of the light. “Transparency becomes a form of absence that conducts visibility like no other filter,” she adds, underscoring the paradoxical role light plays in creating and obscuring forms.
The series also delves into the complexities of transparency and shadow. Victor highlights how even transparent materials, when treated, can produce shadows and reflections that transform the viewer’s perception of the work. “These fractal lenses magnified and projected their own likenesses on the walls – an object’s selfie,” she recalls, describing how the physical elements of the art shift dynamically when exposed to light.
Suzann Victor, Propeller 1, 2024, Laser cut acrylic, 34 x 34 x 6 cm. © Suzann Victor / STPI.
Photo courtesy of the artist and STPI - Creative Workshop & Gallery, Singapore.
Suzann Victor, ENIGMA - In Twelve Movements, 2024, Lithograph on polyester mesh, triptych, 121.5 x 81.5 x 7 cm each.
© Suzann Victor / STPI. Photo courtesy of the artist and STPI - Creative Workshop & Gallery, Singapore.
Exploring the Unseen: Nature and Materiality
Victor’s fascination with the natural world is evident in her use of fractal patterns, which evoke networks seen in nature, such as tree roots, lightning, and river systems. Through her Tension-Printing technique, Victor creates intricate, invisible images by pressing two transparent discs together, allowing surface tension to produce organic fractal patterns. “The force applied to pull the discs apart causes fractal maps to emerge, literally and metaphorically, from between dimensions,” she explains, likening these patterns to mycelium structures, mangrove roots, and even pulmonary networks in living organisms.
This organic influence reflects Victor’s broader artistic journey, which has always incorporated both natural and socio-political themes. Throughout her career, she has consistently explored materiality in relation to social issues, whether it’s her use of human hair and blood in earlier installations or her environmental works like Rainbow Circle at the 4th Singapore Biennale. There, Victor employed sunlight and water to create real rainbows inside a museum, challenging viewers to rethink their relationship with natural phenomena.
At the core of Constellations is a deep engagement with the unseen forces that shape our world. Victor’s work transforms ordinary materials into extraordinary experiences, revealing layers of complexity that encourage viewers to look beyond the surface. “Art reorganizes the architecture of our perception and awareness,” Victor reflects, “and when used to optimize our inter-connectedness, potential and growth, how profound is that!”.
Suzann Victor’s Constellations is a transformative exhibition, not only showcasing her technical brilliance but also inviting viewers to participate in the continuous dialogue between light, shadow, and space. Through her art, Victor illuminates the unseen dimensions of both the material and the metaphysical, creating a profound and immersive experience that challenges our perception of the world around us.
Suzann Victor: Constellations
Date: 15 January – 2 March 2025
Location: STPI – Creative Workshop & Gallery
(41 Robertson Quay, Singapore 238236)
Opening Hours: Mondays – Saturdays: 10am – 7pm
Sundays: 11am – 5pm
Closed: Public Holidays
