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Week of Sunday, June 2, 2013
■ June 2013
■ Covering the Arts throughout the Philadelphia Region
ExhibitionsInSight
Artist carves adolescents and ‘Social Studies’
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labeled “Susan Hagen: Social Studies.” Besides the artworks on display, a gallery talk by s a general rule, the artist will be offered on holding a solo Saturday, June 8, at 2 p.m. In exhibition is a significant event addition, an opening reception will take place a day earlier, in an artist’s career. For Susan on Friday, June 7, between 5 and 8 p.m. There is no admisHagen, this dission fee for either of these tinction is about occasions. to be doubled. Hagen was born in ChamHer carved wooden sculptures and highly paign, Ill., and grew up in representational drawings will Stevens Point, Wisc., Today, she lives in Philadelphia and be offered simultaneously in teaches at Bucks County two different venues where recent art-works are regularly Community College. Besides a BFA degree from the Minnepresented. apolis College of Art and DeOne of these installations sign, she also holds an MFA will run from June 7 to July from the Cranbrook Academy 20 at the Center for Art in Wood at 141 N. 3rd St. in Old of Art. Her major field was City. The other is set to remain sculpture at both schools. To this day, her principal on view in the Schmidt-Dean areas of concentration in the Gallery at 1719 Chestnut studio are small-scale selecSt. (4th floor) in center city tions in carved wood, which through June 29. It is titled she then finishes by burning, “Susan Hagen: This is Real/ bleaching or painting, and also New Work about Life in drawings, mostly rendered in Philadelphia.” ink wash and Conté crayon on The show at the Center for paper. Art in Wood was curated by In the past, Hagen’s oeuvre distinguished critic and art has touched on a diversity professor Robin Rice. It is
By Burton Wasserman
Susan Hagen’s “Gilbert”: carved linden, wood, oils; 16 ½ x 14 ½ x 10 ½”; 2012.
of themes — from animals threatened with extinction to soldiers enduring the vicissitudes of service in zones of deadly combat. An especially interesting group of important pieces dealt with historically significant tableaux illuminating life experienced by prisoners and civilians at Eastern State Penitentiary. Yet another fascinating group of sculptures was dedicated to renderings of boys and girls passing through their teenage years. Most recently, her efforts have been tuned in to closeups on everyday life in the local region. Chris Schmidt, her gallerist in the Rittenhouse Square vicinity, has observed, “Hagen’s work affords spectators a rare insight into the local ecosystem and the challenges it presents to those who are surrounded by it.” “Furthermore,” he adds, “the mythology of the immediate region and the heroic struggle of people to carry on within their world makes up Please see Susan Hagen on A25