Susanna Moller

Susanna’s work consists of many small watercolor studies of parts of the body that have been subjected to painful or grotesque process. Some are simply age, others are physical bodily harm, and others are discolorations or mutations of body parts by outside forces.

The most striking thing about this work is the use of color and line to really make the studies jump off the page. The picture of the bloodshot eye in particular comes to mind here because of the beautifully rendered veins in the white of the eye and the individual eye lashes that look as though they have been clumped together by tears. The eye is also looking up which gives me the idea that they may be putting in eye drops or they may be having someone look in their eye to see if there is anything in it. I think these factors make the work real and relatable and it remind me of when I got sawdust stuck under my eyelid and had to get yellow chemicals put in it and had to wear an eye patch. This ability to bring back memories or reactions so vividly marks a very successful piece of work.

I feel the use of color here is also particularly successful. They bring out the grotesque factor I think Susanna was going for very well. The colors in the eye make me cringe at the thought of the pain and the colors on the study of the teeth just make me glad I don’t drink coffee and still make me want to go brush my teeth. In this picture, the gum line is also particularly gruesome. Not only do the teeth look stained and as though they are riddled with cavities, they also look extremely painful because of the inflamed, red gums. What works so well here is the fact that the red is so purposefully located. If the entire gum line was such a dark red, it would not be so noticeable. The fact that the gums get very light to the point of white makes them seem even more unhealthy and with the strip of bright red at the top, they look positively painful.

The second pair of teeth I looked at simply made me cringe, which in this case, is a positive comment. The fact that the gums are purple is simply disturbing. It makes me try to think of diseases that cause gum discoloration. Once again here the teeth themselves are discolored and stained. The different colors, black, dark brown, and dark yellow make me wonder what the person could have done to get such bad teeth.

The fact that each of the pieces in this work made me wonder about the person as a whole and worry about them and be disgusted by them all at the same time make this project a complete success in my mind. The color stands out the most but the size and small details draw the viewer in. I would love to see this done on a larger scale though I think the detail would have to be even more impressive to keep the viewer interested in a larger version.

-Carly