Suzanne Gainer

Woman Who Once Had Wings #4

Digital photography/archival inkjet print

“'Woman Who Once Had Wings' is about the vulnerability of being a woman. Like many, I have experienced the joy and power of my body but have also experienced harmful sexual advances, harassment, and abuse. Now in my 50s, my invisible, aging body carries both the scars and desires of my youth. Throughout this series, I use self-portraiture to unapologetically own the gaze upon my body. Other motifs such as feathers, open sky, and domestic interiors are used to represent the desire to break free from emotional and psychological bondage.

I cannot presume that my physical body, size, shape, skin color, or age is universally relatable. I do intend, however, for these concepts to be understood on a larger, archetypal level. Whatever one’s background, there are common experiences amongst all women.”

— Suzanne Gainer

About the artist

Suzanne Gainer

American

Suzanne Gainer received her BA in Communication from St. Vincent College in Latrobe, Pennsylvania and her MFA from Rhode Island School of Design in Providence. She is a professor in the Communication Department at Worcester State University where she teaches courses in Photography, Digital Imaging, and Graphic Design. She recently concluded a 6-week artist residency at Joya Arte + Ecología in Velez Blanco, Spain where she began the explorations of her most recent body of work, Woman Who Once Had Wings. Gainer’s work ranges in theme from formal explorations of spaces and objects to feminist considerations of the body. Her methods utilize photography, self-portraiture, digital image manipulation, and video.

Recent exhibitions include Portrait of the Self at the SAGE Gallery in Bangkok, Thailand, Picturing Plurality at the Circle Gallery in Baltimore, MD, The 7th Annual National Juried Art Competition and Exhibition at the Center for Contemporary Arts in Abilene, TX, Atmosphere at D’Art East Gallery in Denver, Colorado, and The Danforth Annual Juried Exhibition in Framingham, MA. Her work will be included in the forthcoming exhibition, Nostalgia, at the Millepiani Exhibition Space in Rome, Italy in February 2024.