By Dominique Hunter

A CURSORY glance at the artwork produced by Joanna Suchit would suggest an artist who has had years of experience in the field, perhaps even working as an apprentice under the learned eye of some great master artist or the other. There is confidence and directness in the way she paints that would convince you of this. But this couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, it was something she took up rather impulsively and has since held onto, determined to see it through regardless of where it might lead.

At just 22 years old, the former President’s College student described her years at the school as having done nothing to encourage any form of artistic endeavour.

“I absolutely hated art in President’s College. It was in 2015, the same year I applied to the art school, that I met a friend who was showing me his artwork. I didn’t think it was very nice. So I decided to try my own thing to show him that I could do better than that. And I did. The next month I gathered all the work I made and used them to apply to [the E.R. Burrowes School of Art].”

For someone with no prior art training and a general aversion to the subject itself, her first portfolio of artwork was impressive enough to secure her a spot in the school’s three-year diploma programme. And while she admitted there was an initial feeling of overwhelming dread about having to complete the institution’s many introductory courses, Suchit quickly realised how crucial they were to her growth as a creative practitioner. She readily acknowledged that it was the exposure to those subject areas she was less enthused about that allowed her the opportunity to mature in both her personal and professional life.

She went on to explain that soon after embracing the sometimes-uncomfortable nature of her new creative journey, her eyes were opened to the endless possibilities each art medium presented individually, as well as in combination with each other. Suddenly new avenues for experimentation were opening up before her, energising her practice and encouraging her to press on in spite of what was happening around her.

Speaking on some of the challenges she would have encountered during her time at the art school, Suchit explained that aside from the steep material costs attached to pursuing art formally, she managed to keep most of her challenges at bay by envisioning her goals and training her mind to stay fixed on them.

“Nothing really bothered me in the art school. I knew what I wanted to do so I just focused on that,” she said.

When asked whether her art-making process could be described as premeditated or intuitive, Suchit explained that her preference is to make free flowing work, far removed from the burdensome nature of any kind of planning. She is not one to resolve ideas through multiple sketches and/or colour studies. Instead, her approach is much more visceral and it relies heavily on instantaneous decision-making. It was precisely this type of instinctual response to her various subject matters that ultimately led to her decision to employ what she refers to as “intro reality” as the conceptual framework of her art. The result of this was an allowance for the kind of self-reflection that eventually manifested in the form of a visibly diverse group of paintings that are all connected thematically.

“It’s like introspection but more about me accepting who I am,” she explained. “Once I based the work off of myself, it opened up a wide range of paintings for me. Whether it was still life painting or portraiture, everything just made sense because it was about my emotions and my expressions. It’s my way of speaking without actually speaking.”

This new personal philosophy represented quite a significant shift considering her early resistance to making art. She went on to explain that her transition from one extreme to the other in such a short amount of time did not go unnoticed. In fact, it fostered a deep appreciation for the incredible talent she discovered once she changed her mindset.

“When I understood portraiture and I could control the brush, instead of having it control me, that’s when I started to smile. I would say I am blessed with the skill to paint because in three years I’ve acquired so much. I wasn’t practising art before but I caught on really quickly. So I’m very grateful for that.”

Now that she is no longer working under the constraints of a rigid art school curriculum, Suchit is hopeful about making time in her daily schedule to strengthen her figure painting techniques. One particular subject area she has expressed a desire to study even further is human anatomy. She explained that once she has a thorough understanding of how the figure operates, whether in motion or at rest, she would much closer to mastering realism and taking her work to the next level.

In addition to her love of art, she has been pursuing another equally fulfilling passion: teaching. Suchit works part-time at the E.R. Burrowes School of Art, where she has been teaching painting and drawing classes. More recently she has been employed as an art tutor at her alma mater, President’s College.

While she admits that she is often filled with pride to witness each student’s growth as they realise their individual potential, she can also be quite disheartened by the alarming rate at which many students abandon their dream of pursuing art professionally.

“I’ve seen so many persons drop out of the art school. All it takes is commitment, a little bit of patience and understanding that you won’t get it right away.”

Her advice to the art school hopefuls out there is simple:

“Remain committed and have patience because those are the two things that you need in order to get through.”

Suchit’s hard work and discipline has certainly not been overlooked. She recently graduated from the E.R. Burrowes School of Art where she was the recipient of the ‘Best Graduating Diploma Student’ award and the ‘Most Outstanding Student’ award, all of which she has expressed profound gratitude to have obtained.

“Being valedictorian is something I’ve dreamt about and for that dream to come true is absolutely amazing. It feels good knowing my hard work paid off,” she said with enthusiasm.