I am an artist and graduate student in Critical Art Practices at George Mason University. My work is about discovering the human spirit amid the bustle of the modern world. I work in a variety of media, including photography, performance, installation, textiles, and fashion.
Artist Statement:
My work is an adventure, a way to explore questions about a world that is quickly changing. Material things press in on us; our lives are spent buying things, wearing things, fixing things, returning things, storing things. On the other hand, we are full of fire, intelligence, and longings. We create, imagine, love and fight. It is difficult to hold on to the essence of our selves amid all the stuff and the noise.
Spaces interest me a great deal. I like to look at how we imprint spaces with individual energy, using objects, markings, colors, light, and arrangement. We assert our humanness wherever we go.
Bodies are the most intimate spaces that we mark. We do not choose what to wear just for practical reasons. What we choose flows from what we want to become and how we want to be perceived. Fashion is an expression of our desires. It is an intimate visual art applied by virtually every person around the globe, every day of their lives. As I play with the construction and arrangement of clothing, I discover the human imagination.
Biography:
Deborah grew up in a large minister's family in rural Virginia. Since emerging from the forest, she has traveled to many places, and lived in Honduras and Mexico. She has made a living as a housecleaner, camp director, airline manager, baggage handler, disc jockey, teen counselor, waiter, wedding photographer, office manager, seamstress, television researcher, band vocalist, choir director, elder care assistant, restaurant supervisor, jeans salesperson, and lab research subject. Her education includes a B.A. in Spanish and Latin American Studies, and coursework at the National School of Bellas Artes in Mexico.
Image detail:
"Concubine: Part 2"
Women of Old
2009
Artist Statement:
My work is an adventure, a way to explore questions about a world that is quickly changing. Material things press in on us; our lives are spent buying things, wearing things, fixing things, returning things, storing things. On the other hand, we are full of fire, intelligence, and longings. We create, imagine, love and fight. It is difficult to hold on to the essence of our selves amid all the stuff and the noise.
Spaces interest me a great deal. I like to look at how we imprint spaces with individual energy, using objects, markings, colors, light, and arrangement. We assert our humanness wherever we go.
Bodies are the most intimate spaces that we mark. We do not choose what to wear just for practical reasons. What we choose flows from what we want to become and how we want to be perceived. Fashion is an expression of our desires. It is an intimate visual art applied by virtually every person around the globe, every day of their lives. As I play with the construction and arrangement of clothing, I discover the human imagination.
Biography:
Deborah grew up in a large minister's family in rural Virginia. Since emerging from the forest, she has traveled to many places, and lived in Honduras and Mexico. She has made a living as a housecleaner, camp director, airline manager, baggage handler, disc jockey, teen counselor, waiter, wedding photographer, office manager, seamstress, television researcher, band vocalist, choir director, elder care assistant, restaurant supervisor, jeans salesperson, and lab research subject. Her education includes a B.A. in Spanish and Latin American Studies, and coursework at the National School of Bellas Artes in Mexico.
Image detail:
"Concubine: Part 2"
Women of Old
2009
