Love Stories: Susu Art Mart
Susu and Johnny
“In art as in love, instinct is enough.” - Anatole France.
Today’s LOVE STORIES features Susu Pianchupattana, the incredible artist behind Susu Art Mart. Susu draws, paints and plays drums in a group called "Johnny Nameless". Her style is gestural abstract within a dynamic representational space, with distinctive colors from her own handmade paints, that fires your endless imagination. Read Susu’s love story below and be sure to stop by the Asbury Park Valentine’s Bazaar at Asbury Hotel on Saturday, Feb 12th to pick up your own original art from Susu!
When did you meet your partner and how did you get together?
I met Johnny in 2006 at the Union Square greenmarket in NYC. I was studying painting at the New York Studio School and helping out an upstate New York bakery on Saturdays. Johnny worked next to me at a Mennonite pretzel stand. We smiled at each other for about a year and one day he handed me a cute little note asking if I’d like to have some ice-cream with him after work. How could a girl say no to that?! We just seemed to stick together after that and he would come to my studio at the school to see what I was working on. Johnny also invited me to see him play at a Lower East Side club. The first time I saw him play I just thought his guitar and his band were really good and I became a fan of his work from then on.
Does your partner play a role in your small business?
Yes, we help each other. He offers up ideas for paintings and is often a model for my figurative work. Many of my paintings are influenced by his songs. I paint very slowly and it’s hard to know when to stop. Johnny works at a faster pace, so he really helps me to organize time better. When it comes to moving paintings or setting up for art markets he does all the heavy lifting. He’s small, but strong.
Give Me a Taste by Susu Pianchupattana
The Lover by Susu Pianchupattana
What do you love best about your partner?
Johnny is very disciplined in his music. He makes sure I do my pushups to stay fit and that we eat good. He likes making me laugh.
What are your favorite things to do together?
We love watching episodes of Columbo and anything Hitchcock. We play music together. It started naturally when he would ask me to come hit the drums while he was setting up microphones to record and then he taught me to play a few songs. I started sitting in during sessions and for live shows. We now have a group called “Johnny Nameless” and I play drums.
Susu and Johnny
What do you love most about the Asbury Park Bazaar?
This Valentine’s will be my first time at the Asbury Park Bazaar. I have all good feelings about this great town and this fine event and I am thrilled to have been chosen to be a vendor this year.
What will you be selling at the Valentine’s Bazaar?
All original artwork; paintings and drawings in a variety of mediums, and hi-resolution Giclee prints.
Don’t miss Susu Art Mart at the Asbury Park Valentine’s Bazaar on Saturday, February 12th from noon to 5 pm at The Asbury Hotel!