Abstract colorblock painting of a woman sleeping and dreaming in her bed
Image Credit

Susan Wick, Dreaming, 2002. Acrylic paint on canvas; 36 x 60 in. Courtesy of the Artist and David B. Smith Gallery. © Susan Wick. Photo by Wes Magyar

Eyes On: Susan Wick

Now On View

Susan Wick, Dreaming, 2002. Acrylic paint on canvas; 36 x 60 in. Courtesy of the Artist and David B. Smith Gallery. © Susan Wick. Photo by Wes Magyar

For more than six decades, Denver-based artist Susan Wick (born 1938 in Madison, Wisconsin) has made art without inhibition. Driven by a relentless curiosity, Wick conjures worlds of fantasy, intrigue, and desire. Her daring compositions and experiments with materials such as fabric, foil, and printed paper, inspire, and excite the imagination.

Eyes On: Susan Wick features 40 rarely seen paintings on paper with mixed media and collage. Wick created works like those in the exhibition around 1996 for a monthly art subscription, which she mailed to subscribers across the country. By sending her art out into the world, these dreamy and playful paintings exemplify Wick’s desire to foster community and connection.

The exhibition also includes a selection of Wick’s artist’s books from the 1970s to the 2000s. Some books contain daily paintings using discarded books from the Denver Public Library. Others are thematic, like one that illuminates the best sources of chocolate. Often stored in suitcases for ease of transport, these artworks contain a visual lexicon of birds, flowers, domestic interiors, and human figures that find their way into the other works on view. Together, they encourage us to see the artfulness of everyday life in the objects we behold.

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Hamilton Building, Level 3
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Abstract figure with birds for arms

Susan Wick, Cha! Cha! Cha!, about 1996. Acrylic paint and pastel on paper; 13 x 8 in. Courtesy of the Artist and David B. Smith Gallery. © Susan Wick. Photo by Bruce Fernandez, courtesy Denver Art Museum

Tree with a human figure swimming in the dirt below it

Susan Wick, #548., about 1996. Acrylic paint and ink on paper; 13 x 8 in. Courtesy of the Artist and David B. Smith Gallery. © Susan Wick. Photo by Bruce Fernandez, courtesy Denver Art Museum

Man in yellow holding the stem of a large flower

Susan Wick, Hubba Hubba, about 1996. Acrylic paint, graphite, and cut and pasted printed paper on paper; 13 x 8 in. Courtesy of the Artist and David B. Smith Gallery. © Susan Wick. Photo by Bruce Fernandez, courtesy Denver Art Museum

Transparent view of a woman's body

Susan Wick, Yes, forever, about 1996. Acrylic paint on paper; 13 x 8 in. Courtesy of the Artist and David B. Smith Gallery. © Susan Wick. Photo by Bruce Fernandez, courtesy Denver Art Museum

Cactus in an orange-pink desert

Susan Wick, Cactus?, about 1996. Acrylic paint and ink on paper; 13 x 8 in. Courtesy of the Artist and David B. Smith Gallery. © Susan Wick. Photo by Bruce Fernandez, courtesy Denver Art Museum

Tea kettle with block of silver inside

Susan Wick, Silver tea, about 1996. Acrylic paint, pastel, and silver leaf on paper; 13 x 8 in. Courtesy of the Artist and David B. Smith Gallery. © Susan Wick. Photo by Bruce Fernandez, courtesy Denver Art Museum

White bird smooshed into a glass jar

Susan Wick, Bird in a Glass, 2000. Acrylic paint on canvas; 60 x 36 in. Collection of Francie Bishop Good and David Horvitz. Courtesy of the Artist and David B. Smith Gallery. © Susan Wick. Photo by Wes Magyar

Abstract painting of a flower bouquet with leaves and petals framed to represent a picture

Susan Wick, Yes!, 1996, Acrylic and ink on paper, 14 x 10 ½ in. Collection of Francie Bishop Good and David Horvitz. Courtesy David B. Smith Gallery. Photo: Wes Magyar.

Colorful bird on a branch on a windowsill

Susan Wick, Thursday, June 15, 1992, ink, Oil pastel, and acrylic on paper, 11 x 7 ¾ in. Courtesy of the Artist and David B. Smith Gallery. Photo: Wes Magyar.

Flowers and a tote bag strewn about

Susan Wick, Sweet Thoughts, 2020, Acrylic, ink, and silk flower on paper, 13 x 8 inches. Collection of Laura Ricci. Courtesy David B. Smith Gallery. Photo: Wes Magyar.

Windowsill view of a garden and flower bed

Susan Wick, The Garden of Eden, c. 2001, Acrylic, crayon, and ink on canvas, 60 x 47 ¾ in. Courtesy of the Artist and David B. Smith Gallery. Photo: Wes Magyar.

Abstract colorblock painting of a woman sleeping and dreaming in her bed

Susan Wick, Dreaming, 2002. Acrylic paint on canvas; 36 x 60 in. Courtesy of the Artist and David B. Smith Gallery. © Susan Wick. Photo by Wes Magyar

Fox with the body shape of a woman wearing a bright pink dress

Julie Buffalohead (Ponca), A Little Medicine and Magic, 2018. Oil paint on canvas; 60 x 84 in. Denver Art Museum: Indigenous arts of North America acquisition fund, purchased with funds from Loren G. Lipson, M.D., 2018.301A-B. Image courtesy of Julie Buffalohead and Bockley Gallery.

The Eyes On Series

Eyes On introduces audiences to a broad range of practices, ideas, and approaches to exhibition making explored by living artists working at pivotal moments in their careers.

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