"Whitcomb, Part I," 1996, oil on wood and canvas

As painting and teaching came to
consume Sukenic's time, she realized
that her years as a social worker
made their impact through her peo-
ple-centered subjects. By showing
fragments of homes, she was reveal-
ing fragments of how people chose
to live and providing insight into
their personalities and values as
expressed through their surround-
ings.
"A person's home is a total reflec-
tion of who the person is," says
Sukenic, who developed the driving
theme of her work after looking
through old photos for a school
project. "The house is a metaphor,
and the homes of my life and the
memories and fragmentation associ-
ated with them unraveled into these
place portraits.
Sukenic has shown her place por-

traits as part of group exhibits in
Michigan and Illinois. Her paintings
have been on view at the Janice
Charach Epstein Gallery in West
Bloomfield, Detroit Artists Market
and the Start Gallery, which used to
be in Birmingham. The Beverly Art
Center and Moraine Valley
Community College have represent-
ed her in the Chicago area.
Sukenic's exhibit at the Meadow
Brook Art Gallery was arranged by
gallery director Dick Goody, who
has known the artist since graduate
school. One sister, Sheryl Sukenic, a
music therapist who lives in
Huntington Woods, played the harp
at the opening reception.
"It seems very natural to come
back as I do through my paintings,
but the images are not totally natu-
ral," $likeri.ic says. "They all are
reflections of me."

0,411. t
"Oak Park Park — Hill," 2004, oil on canvas with wallpaper

"The Secret Life of Suburbia: Paintings by Deborah Sukenic" runs
through Oct. 10 at the Meadow Brook Art gallery, 208 Wilson Hall,
Oakland University, Rochester. Gallery hours are noon-5 P.m, Tuesdays
through Sundays and evenings during Meadow Brook Theatre perform-
ances. Artist's talk: 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 26. (248) 370-3005.

"Ridged.ale #1 (for Susie)," 2004, oil on canvas with fortune cookie wrappers

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