Suzy Kellems Dominik has garnered a lot of attention in the last year. From her much talked about BADASSERY series to her debut at SCOPE Miami Beach, we sat down with Suzy to chat about Art Basel, fashion and of course her art.
Art Zealous: Let’s start off light, drink order?
Suzy Kellems Dominik: Kettle One Martini, up, olives, filthy
AZ: Astrological sign
SKD: Scorpio
AZ: Muse
SKD: Life
AZ: You’re debuting a few pieces at SCOPE Miami Beach, what can we expect to see from you?
SKD: IN HER DREAMS. In her dreams is the third in a trio of installations dissecting human interaction, relationships and expectations. The sculptural work revolves around a young woman’s relationship with her bed. How the bed becomes a partner, a reservoir for her hopes, dreams and disappointments. It is a work of emotional autobiography that is entirely universal. Therefore becomes utterly and irrevocable the art views own.
HATEFUL LOVE. Hateful Love is a work of BADASSERY. The series is a snapshot meant to lay bare an intense moment, beauty juxtaposed against ugliness. It is the very complicated moment when love blossoms into something grander and grotesque, utterly unrecognizable from simple love.
AZ: You are known for your multi-sensory installations. What is the importance of the sight, sense, sound?
SKD: My work is attuned to a short story, a snap shot into the soul. I believe it is my fearless, emotional autobiography that has drawn attention to my work. Senses engaged and intertwined with intellect and emotion are the playground of a truly glorious, human experience. There is a remarkable moment in each exposition, when it dawns on the art viewer that the beauty wrapped work is a shared base human experience.
AZ: What does your suitcase look like for Basel?
SKD: Goyard, emblazoned with the phrase, “If not now, than when.”
Contents, iconic with a twist of wit. The iconic, museum worthy vintage couture, collected over many years. My dear friend, Rita Watnick of Lily et Cie, has facilitated building my wardrobe and is unsurpassed in the depth of her taste and collection. The twist, a “Wife Defender” tee, never a “Wife Beater” for me… and of course, all of my usual suspects; Hermes, Dior, Saint Laurent, McQueen and newcomer, Johnson Hartig’s Libertine.
AZ: Do you have an outfit for your IN HER DREAMS debut?
SKD: Better, I have an iconic, signature piece of jewelry! I will don a necklace by Codnognato, the uber-fab and coveted Venetian jeweler. I am fortunate to have won the piece, at a Sotheby’s auction, of the collection of the infinitely cultured and chic, late Dodi Rosecrans.
AZ: What are your thoughts on the interaction between fashion and art?
SKD: Art and fashion are wedded, hand in hand. They each exist within and to amplify a context of our society, to mark our civilization (or lack thereof) along with music and literature.
AZ: Dream collaboration
SKD: If I tell you will it come true?!
AZ: What do you have upcoming next?
SKD: WORK, WORK, WORK! I am fortunate to be deep into my next series. If you think my work is dark, hang onto your heart. I am just getting started.
Photo // Hanna Hazel
