The sensation of color, the lushness of oil paints, the thrill of creating, and the surprise of abstraction are what drive me to paint--Add drama to the canvas, and I’m hooked! At the inception of my paintings, I select colors inspired by nature, random places, or other artists’ paintings, whatever catches my eye, stirs my curiosity, or challenges me. From there, I draw lines on the canvas, creating the structure of geometric spaces that will conspire and dialog with the vignettes of organic and fluid movements of paint. I place color next to color, with the goal of finding just the right combination so that each will make the other shine, or as in this series, “Pop!”
My hope is that my paintings’ lushness, power and mood-altering color will affect the viewer on a visceral, not practical level. I want to excite the viewers’ imagination so that they pay attention to, remember, and ultimately discover something new through color!
My latest series is called Color Pops, Beautiful Transients.
Artist Biography
Color. Form. Space. Once only childish playmates, this tempestuous trio has become a passion for Su Knoll Horty. Exploring the power of color to elicit emotion, Su sees it as her task to convey the exuberance she feels when working with the saturated colors in her painting. She is also fascinated by the spatial dimensions, which can develop through the relationship of colors. That’s passion. Once you’re in its Jack Russell grip, there’s no shaking it off – no matter where life takes you. In 2012, Su completed the CE Core Curriculum Program at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (Pafa). Su continues to study with Abstract teachers, Kassem Amoudi at Pafa, and online with Peter Bonner at The Art Students League of New York. She most recently received a 3rd Place award in The ArtList September Artist of the Month Contest, 2019. She also received an Award of Merit from Manhattan Arts International in the online exhibition of The Healing Power of Art 2019. Su is a member of the Philadelphia Sketch Club and received two Honorable Mention awards for her entries in the Absolutely Abstract shows, in 2012 and 2013 as well as being a juror in the 2015 Absolutely Abstract Show. Su exhibits regularly and has exhibited in numerous solo and group shows, including The Biggs Museum of American Art and The Delaware Contemporary. Her work is held in the Camden County Art Bank in New Jersey and in numerous private collections in both the United States and Mexico.
Su Knoll Horty was represented by Bluestone Fine Art Gallery in Old City Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from 2013 until their closing in 2020. Su has had a solo exhibition at SOMA NewArt Gallery in Cape May, New Jersey and exhibited at Hardcastle Gallery in Centreville, Delaware. From 2012 until 2019, Su displayed her paintings in Senator Chris Coons’ Washington, D.C. office.
Education
2020 The Art Students League of New York, online Abstract Painting with Peter Bonner
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA Ongoing Studies with Kassem Amoudi
2015 Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA Master Class with Christine LaFuente
2014 Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA Master Class with Bill Scott
2013 Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA Master Class with Elizabeth Osborne
2012 Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA CE Core Curriculum Program
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA Master Class with Bill Scott
2008 University of Delaware, Wilmington, DE Academy of Life Long Learning
2005 The Art Studio, Newport, DE
Awards & Honors
2019 3rd Place, September Artist of the Month Contest, TheArtList, Online
Award of Merit, Manhattan Arts International, The Healing Power of Art Online Art Exhibition, New York, NY
2012 Honorable Mention Award, Philadelphia Sketch Club Absolutely Abstract, Philadelphia, PA (2013)
Bibliography
2021 Tyler, Sandra, The Woven Tale Press, Vol. No. IX #5, pp. 68 - 73, 75, June 1, 2021
2020 Braat, Sydney A. "The Arts/In the Galleries, Philadelphia-Based Gallery, Bluestone Fine Art, Joins the Hamptons Virtual Art Fair with Impressive Line-Up of Artists", Hamptons.com, August 27, 2020
2018 Galer, Lele "Art Watch, Artists Who Have Changed Course Midlife," WCHE 1520AM Radio, January 10, 2018
Art Gallery/Center for Emerging Visual Artists, Sonesta Philadelphia Hotel, Philadelphia, PA Curator: Genevieve Coutroubis
2017 Annual Holiday Miniature Art Show, Hardcastle Gallery, Centreville, DE
Philadelphia Open Studio Tours (POST), 47 Arts, Philadelphia, PA
2016 Annual Holiday Small Works Art Show, Hardcastle Galleries, Centreville, DE
The Perkins Annual: Open Media Exhibition, Perkins Center for the Arts, Moorestown, NJ Juror: Amie Potsic
Artexpo New York, World Wide Art & Artavita Gallery, New York City, NY
153rd Annual Exhibition of Small Oil Paintings, Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA Jurors: Alex Kanevsky, Alice Oh, Bill Scott
2015 Holiday Art Show, Center for Emerging Visual Artists, Philadelphia, PA Curator: Genevieve Coutroubis
Philadelphia Open Studio Tours (POST), Ground Floor Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
Spring Gala Exhibition, Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA
72nd Annual Awards Painting Show, Cheltenham Center for the Arts, Cheltenham, PA Juror: Sharon Ewing
Celebration of Art and Life 2015, Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine, Philadelphia, PA Curator: Genevieve Coutroubis
2014 Biggs Picture, Biggs Museum of American Art, Dover, DE Juror: Ryan Grover
CE Annual Juried Student Exhibition, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
2013 Artists Unite! Project Fishtown, The Hatchatory, Fishtown, PA
70th Annual Awards Painting Show, Cheltenham Center for the Arts, Cheltenham, PA Juror: Joan Wadleigh Curran
CE Annual Juried Student Exhibition, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Absolutely Abstract, The Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA
150th Annual Exhibition of Small Oil Paintings, The Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA
38th Annual Juried Art Competition & Exhibition, Camden County Cultural & Heritage Commission at Camden County College, Blackwood, NJ, Juror: Anthony Vega
2012 CE Annual Juried Student Exhibition, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Absolutely Abstract, The Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA
2011 37th Annual Juried Exhibition, Hopkins House Gallery of Contemporary Art, Haddon Twp., NJ Juror: Scott Noel
Absolutely Abstract, The Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA
CE Annual Juried Student Exhibition, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
2010 First Friday in Old City, Philadelphia, PA (three-person exhibition)
Five New Artists in Old City, Philadelphia, PA
Member’s Juried Exhibition, Chester County Art Association, West Chester, PA
Absolutely Abstract, The Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA
CE Annual Juried Student Exhibition, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Manayunk Roxborough Art Center, Philadelphia, PA Juror: Frances Galante
2009 CE Annual Juried Student Exhibition, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
2008 CE Annual Juried Student Exhibition, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
