Gloucester Daily Times
http://www.gloucestertimes.com/
Published: January 29, 2007
Erony moves on to make her own art
By Gail McCarthy
Staff writer
Susan Erony, who just stepped down as executive director of seARTs, will focus on her own work as a contemporary artist.
Among her reasons for resigning included her desire to spend more time in her art studio and return to her first profession.
"My first love is making art, but because of seARTS, I can do so in an environment that is increasingly friendly and supportive of me and my colleagues," she said. "I am enormously grateful to the members of seARTS for the opportunity to contribute to an organization I see as essential to the continued revitalization of the cultural community on Cape Ann."
Erony noted that much of the work of seARTS is invisible to the community.
"The residents do not see the countless hours the staff and board members give of themselves at meetings and networking with individuals and organizations important to the future direction of this area," she said.
Jo-Ann Castano, a founder of the group, said she was grateful for Erony's contribution.
"Her inexhaustible compassion for people, her insight to the world of art, her art creations, her educational endeavors and her work with the community will have lasting impact on us all," Castano said. "She understands Cape Ann's cultural history as if it were interchangeable with the present. She has shared that wealth of experience with everyone she has reached. She has led us into the future with integrity and a respect for our cultural heritage and the value of artistic pursuit. She is a true artist in every sense."
Erony urges the general public to be open about the essence of authentic and expressive art.
"Art can also be deeply reflective and investigative. Such art can be difficult and disturbing. For Cape Ann to truly move forward as a cultural community, however, there must be room for such work," she said. "That is the work that tells us about ourselves, that makes us think about what it means to be human now, that allows us to look at ourselves critically in the safe confines of a creative work. As a society, we need all kinds of art; art that makes us happy, art that makes us think, art with which we love to live, and art that makes us very uncomfortable."