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The deep blue rectangle in the center of the painting is the genesis, the pool of creativity, a wellspring of movement and energy. Broad strokes of bright orange flecked with red surround it like corridors of growth, reflecting the artist's fervor as her creation expands. Streaks of green reach from the fiery perimeter to the cool interior, as if fueled by the painting's center.
What a bunch of bunk.
"People will ask me, 'What do these lines mean?'" artist Su Daitch said. "I say, it means that's where I put the paint."
How's that for unpretentious?
"It took me a long time to say I was an artist," said Daitch, adding she's sold 51 pieces so far this year. "Doesn't that mean there's something to it?"
Daitch, who lives a few miles south of the Marietta Square, has been selling her colorful, primarily abstract paintings, since 2002 at Cafe Tu Tu Tango, a Buckhead restaurant and art gallery (www.cafetututango.com). On Saturday , she has her first official artist event, a reception at J. Reid Gallery in Buford. Her work will remain on exhibition indefinitely.
"She has several distinct styles," said David Armstrong, general manager at Cafe Tu Tu Tango. "Some of it I would call pop art. Some is impressionistic art that is full of color. Very much like her, it's exuberant, it's energizing. She sells a lot of art here."
Daitch, 57, worked for years in corporate settings as an office manager. About eight years ago, she began suffering memory loss due to a neurological condition, and she could no longer work. She filled her time by making quilts for children in the neighborhood and in hospitals.
"Then one morning I got up and said, 'I want to paint,' " Daitch recalled.
Her husband, Gordon Daitch, asked, "Which room?"
Soon after his wife started painting, Gordon Daitch got involved. He makes the canvasses and is in charge of cataloging the hundreds of paintings that now fill their home. Su Daitch sells most of her pieces for $400-$600, and offers clients their money back if they're not happy. So far, they're all happy. Artist reception
> Where: J. Reid Gallery; 75 Main St., Buford
> When: 6-9 p.m. Saturday
> Info: 770-271-0008, www.artsbysu.com
Copyright 2006 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
