For immediate release 5/23/24
Contact: Kate Pickup, 244-7065
Director of Communications and Technology
Exhibit Susan Beallor – Xela: Weathered and Worn
On display June 3 – July 9, 2024
Southwest Harbor – Experience Southwest Harbor’s Susan Beallor solo installation Xela: Weathered and Worn at the Southwest Harbor Public Library from June 3 to July 9. Meet the artist at a reception on Friday, June 7th from 5:00-7:00 p.m.
Xela: Weathered and Worn is an installation inspired by photographs taken in Xela, Guatemala by Susan Beallor. Xela is the Mayan name for Quetzaltenango, located in a mountain valley almost 8,000 feet above sea level. Xela pronounced “Shay-la” is considered one of the most beautiful cities in Central America with a Mayan population of 50%. You can hear K?iche one of the Mayan languages, spoken as you walk through the markets and narrow streets. Surrounded by dilapidated buildings hundreds of years old one is transported back in time. These provocative photographs are the result of Beallor’s artistic adventure which began years ago on the streets of New York City.
Growing up on the upper west side of Manhattan in the 1970’s, Susan Beallor was inspired by the photographers Alfred Stieglitz and Edward Steichen. She began her artistic journey by documenting the thriving and vibrant metropolis around her in a simple and straightforward manner, focusing her attention on composition and technical quality while capturing the essence of the moment.
In 2000 Susan studied jewelry making and fell in love with high karat gold and classical goldsmithing. Starting with pure gold she creates, by hand, every element of her intricate 22k gold pieces. 2010, Beallor traded her high karat gold and gemstones for natural manila rope as she transitioned to a larger and bolder media for expression. Creating large woven pieces and installations she was able to express emotion in a visual way that mirrored her journey and struggle to hold onto her personal identity while raising her two daughters and managing the hectic life of a corporate wife.
Now in 2024, in this current installation, we see that Beallor has returned to her photographic roots. With a more mature eye she now looks beyond the man in the street to uncover the hidden expressionism missed by the casual observer. She is photographer, Aaron Siskind with color photos. Siskind, who was strongly influenced by the abstract expressionist painters Franz Kline, Barnett Newman and Mark Rothko valued spontaneity and improvisation and sought to emphasize line, texture and form.
In Xela, walking the streets at night, she was overwhelmed by the beauty of the abstractions of man-made and natural patterns of the weathered building facades and reflections of light and water. It was a visceral flashback to the streets of her hometown of NYC with its grittiness and age and she had a sense of going back in time. In her travels she has noticed how varied the cast of light is in different countries and cities. The light in Xela, especially at night, with the quiet empty streets and decaying buildings created the perfect backdrop which inspired Beallor to document these luscious photographs.
Susan’s exhibits include The United States Botanic Garden, Washington, DC; The Children’s Museum of the Arts, New York; The Museum of Contemporary Art in Atlanta, Georgia; The Bar Harbor Historical Society; Showhouses in Atlanta and New York. Among her editorial credits are the Huffington Post, New England Home, Buckhead Lifestyle Magazine, New York Textile Month (cover) and she has been profiled in numerous other decorative, design and online publications.
For questions or for exhibit information call the Library at 207-244-7065, visit www.swhplibrary.org, or email .
For the Calendar: June 2 – July 6 and June 7 Reception
Art Installation. Southwest Harbor Public Library. Weathered and Worn: Art Installation by Susan Beallor. 207-244-7065, www.swhplibrary.org or .
Art Reception. Jun 7. 5:00-7:00 p.m. Fri. Southwest Harbor Public Library. Weathered and Worn: Art Installation by Susan Beallor. Refreshments provided. 207-244-7065, www.swhplibrary.org or .