Susan Valyi

Susan Valyi lives on the edge of the small town of Pointe-Fortune, along the Ottawa River on the Quebec-Ontario border—where the boundary runs through her property. She sleeps in Ontario, while her cars are parked in Quebec. Her creative process takes place in various locations, including an upstairs studio, a downstairs workspace, the kitchen stove, an unheated tool shed, and primarily at a foundry in Montreal.

“I always work for myself but I also find the audience very important. I’m happy my art is self-explanatory. Accessible. I confess I seek affirmation. I like to engage an audience. It has always been that way for me.” Susan Valyi

An artist all her life, Valyi never considered another path. After a long hiatus, she has returned to her practice with renewed energy and is exploring a new medium. She was introduced to bronze many years ago by a friend in Costa Rica but only recently discovered a bronze foundry in Montreal that offers workshops. This set her on a new challenging and rewarding journey. She now completes every step of the process herself from wax casting to patina application.

“I can see my work as quirky and somewhat naive. I’m comfortable with that. I work from drawings and photographs both mine and in the public domain. So far these sculptures all have fish in them. This will probably end at some point. One of them is inspired by a famous photograph of Salvador Dali with a baby dolphin on his head. I identify with images that maybe don’t entirely make sense but have a kind of humour in them. My countless drawings also reflect this attitude.” Susan Valyi

Susan Valyi studied at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design and has exhibited extensively across Canada. Her work is held in numerous collections, and she has shown at several galleries. She has received two awards—one from the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair and another from the New Art Festival in Ottawa.

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