Painter from the North West of England
My drawings and paintings carry the familiarity of childhood stories and dreamlike scenes. Painting can speak what remains unsayable - evoking feelings rather than offering answers. I hope they spark a quiet recognition, a sense of compassion for our shared, unpredictable and beautiful humanity.
I create dramatic tableaux using familiar objects to explore the brittle tension between our inner and outer worlds. Plug sockets, roses, cables, phones, windows, create psychological charge. In reality, my relationship with wasps embodies this tension. They fly through my window, lost and disoriented. Attempts to find their way out are mostly futile and carry a strange poignancy. There is something regal about their form: unappreciated and unwelcome, yet strangely elegant and refined.
I think of David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive where we are pulled inside the mind of the main protagonist. Betty Elms’ bright, naive optimism feels rehearsed and perfectly cliché. Any meaning of the film slides beyond reach.
Until early 2024 I predominately worked in graphite or watercolour. Now having been introduced to the delight of oil painting, I prefer to work slowly, layering translucent layers over weeks or months, allowing the colour to become rich and vibrant.
For price list, please email me at studio[at]susannahpal.com
For work in progress please see my Instagram here.
Susannah in her home studio 2025