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Suzan Pitt
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<p>Suzan Pitt Kraning (born Suzan Lee Pitt; July 11, 1943 – June 16, 2019), known professionally as Suzan Pitt, was an American <a href="/facts/Film_director/IlmswLJh">film director</a>, <a href="/facts/Animator/A1yVPjVn">animator</a>, <a href="/facts/Painting/ygQ47K3b">painter</a>, and <a href="/facts/Fashion_design/7M4s70H5">fashion designer</a> best known for her <a href="/facts/Surrealism/VUJpoo6c">surrealist</a> animated shorts, including <i><a href="/facts/Asparagus_(film)/uKh7gvqC">Asparagus</a></i> (1979). </p><p>Though never commercially successful as an animated filmmaker, Pitt's films developed a <a href="/facts/Cult_following/bzUD4beU">cult following</a>, especially following <i>Asparagus'</i> pairing with <i><a href="/facts/Eraserhead/IEWYvxgf">Eraserhead</a></i> (1977) during the latter's run on the <a href="/facts/Midnight_movie/TdJW6a55">midnight movies circuit</a>. Outside of filmmaking, Pitt was well-known for her painted <a href="/facts/Graffiti/xE9oqKsk">graffiti</a> coats, which first debuted alongside <a href="/facts/Keith_Haring/0UmfgQXY">Keith Haring's</a> at <a href="/facts/Patricia_Field/GYLdRXEY">Patricia Field’s</a> store in 1984. She also taught animation at <a href="/facts/Harvard_University/Lhy9L1cx">Harvard University</a>, <a href="/facts/Minneapolis_College_of_Art_and_Design/l253M8Us">Minneapolis College of Art and Design</a>, and <a href="/facts/California_Institute_of_the_Arts/496YyKAp">California Institute of the Arts</a>. </p><p>Though best remembered for her films, Pitt found more financial success as a painter, with her works being in the collections of the <a href="/facts/Museum_of_Modern_Art/75lxKjfj">Museum of Modern Art</a> in <a href="/facts/New_York_City/YlyvFmVC">New York</a>, <a href="/facts/Walker_Art_Center/evtAI7zI">Walker Art Center</a> in <a href="/facts/Minneapolis/gEsXsP3d">Minneapolis</a>, and the <a href="/facts/Museum_Ludwig/fpaPIeEp">Ludwig Museum</a> in <a href="/facts/Cologne/U2qmyGga">Cologne</a>. Pitt died of <a href="/facts/Pancreatic_cancer/6h9GIInW">pancreatic cancer</a> in 2019, shortly after receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award from <a href="/facts/Animafest_Zagreb/yQF51Lym">Animafest Zagreb</a>. </p>