Susana Paiva is a Portuguese artist who has been making experimental photography for over two decades. Her work is characterized by a unique approach to the photographic medium, one that emphasizes the body and its movements as integral components of the image-making process.

Paiva's work is informed by her background in performance art, a discipline that emphasizes the physicality of the artist and the performative aspect of the creative act. In her photography, Paiva channels this ethos through her use of gestural mark-making, whereby she creates images that are the result of physical actions, rather than the result of a static, mechanical process. By incorporating movement and the body into her photographic process, Paiva creates images that are imbued with a sense of energy and dynamism that is often absent from more traditional photographic works.

Paiva's process involves creating chemigrams, a photographic technique that involves using a variety of chemicals and materials to manipulate the photographic surface. This process allows her to create images that are not only unique but also imbued with a sense of the unexpected. Through her use of chemigrams, Paiva creates images that are more akin to paintings or drawings, rather than traditional photographs. This approach to photography is radical in its rejection of the traditional photographic image, instead, she foregrounds the process of image creation, blurring the lines between photography, painting, and performance.

Central to Paiva's work is the role of the body in the photographic process. Her approach involves an embodied way of working that incorporates movement and gesture, as well as the use of tools such as brushes and squeegees, to create images that are the result of a physical process. The body becomes a site of creative exploration, a tool through which Paiva is able to create images that are both abstract and representational, that capture the essence of the physical and emotional experience of image-making.

The relationship between Paiva's photography and performance art is most evident in her approach to the creation of her images. Her work is often created in a performative manner, with Paiva working live in front of an audience, utilizing her body to create marks on the photographic surface. This performative aspect of her work adds an extra dimension to the final image, imbuing it with a sense of spontaneity and unpredictability that is often absent from more traditional photographic works.

In conclusion, Susana Paiva's work is a radical departure from traditional photographic practices. Her use of the body and her emphasis on the performative aspects of the photographic process create images that are imbued with a sense of energy and dynamism that is often absent from more conventional photographic works. By breaking down the traditional boundaries between photography, painting, and performance, Paiva has created a body of work that challenges the very notion of what photography can be, and in doing so, has expanded the possibilities of this medium.