Artist CV
About
Studied: University of California, Berkeley B.F.A., University of California Los Angeles, M.F.A.
Currently lives and works in Santa Cruz, California
Dirksen began her studies in art in Japan with a sumi-e master. He taught her to empty herself of the external world and focus on the perfection of the brushstroke, repeating it until she caught its essence. Her work has always been concerned with the strong tradition of articulating light along with her desire to create impeccable textured surfaces within her paintings. Dirksen uses the paintbrush as an extension of her arm to bring forth luminosity and potently-hued energy. The paintings are meticulously built-up in thin washes of acrylic paint to embody the varying intensities of light. When experienced from different points of view, the paintings pulsate, as the subtleties of light change to create a vibrant, living surface. Sue Dirksen travels a portion of each year to Mexico or Hawaii which inspires her to focus on smaller paintings and works on paper for practical reasons. The artworks represented in this collection are watercolors that were painted as her homage to the seductive sky and sea that she looked upon daily from her beach front studio.
Sue Dirksen’s artwork is included in the permanent collections of several highly respected corporate collections such as: Aero Jet Corporation, La Jolla, CA; Bank of America, CA; Columbia Savings, CA; University of CA Los Angeles, CA; Security Pacific Collection; Christophe deMenil Collection, New York, NY; and Kokusai Kanko Co, Sapporo City, Japan.