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Debra Disman

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Ara Oshagan

In Reflection: “Three Sisters And Their Mother” and more

February 5, 2024 By Debra Disman

I was thrilled to have a solo exhibition last winter at ReflectSpace Gallery, part of Glendale Arts and Culture, in the Glendale Central Library which opened Saturday January 28th and was on view through March 19,2023.
The show, a dream come true that I did not even know I  had, was curated by the wonderful Ara and Anahid Oshagan of The City of Glendale and founders of the gallery..

I was fortunate to have master photographer Gene Ogami document the show.

I share here two images featuring a work entitled, “Three Sisters And Their Mother”, which  engages a concept and presentation I am still exploring.

“Three Sisters and Their Mother” (2022),  made of canvas, acrylic paint, hemp cord, sunlight and gravity, is approximately 30” x 72”. Its dimensions are variable depending on how it is installed, the intervals of space between the components or sections, the way its ever-tangling cord/string wanders across each section, how high or low to the ceiling or the floor it is positioned, and how much in relief from the wall it is hung. As Eva Hesse once said about a work or works of hers… Can it be different every time…? (paraphrase). Naomi Spector writes beautifully about these ideas as regards to Hesse’s work.

Also pictured are: (below and clockwise from “Three Sisters And Their Mother”)
“I Can’t I Won’t I Will I Do”, (The titular work in the show), 2022,13 x 71.5”, repurposed table runner, acrylic paint, linen thread
“Finally”, (can hang on wall in slight relief), 2022, 48 x 19.5”, canvas, lace, hemp cord, sewing thread
“Excavation of the Interior”, 2021, 12″ x 28″ x 12.5″, wood, mulberry paper, canvas, muslin, watercolor paper, hemp cord, linen thread
Our human connections, gossamer though they may seem, form a tangled web that is always changing, and in some ways unfathomable, but there and always mysterious.

 

Filed Under: Exhibitions, New Work, Presentations, TEXTILE/FIBER, Work Tagged With: "Excavation of the Interior", "Finally", "I Can't I Won't I Will I Do", "Tree Sisters and Thier Monther", abstract, abstraction, Anahid Oshagan, Ara Oshagan, Book Festival, BOOK WORKS, Bookmakiing Workshops, Books, City of Glendale, Cord, Curators Ara Oshagan and  Anahid Oshagan, Director of Glendale Library Arts and Culture Gary Shaffer, Eva Hesse, Fiber, Fiber Art, Frida Cano, Gene Ogami, Glendale Arts and Culture, Glendale Central Library, Glendale Library Arts and Culture, Glendale Mayor Ardy Kassakhian, Handmade Books, Hangings, Jennifer Remenchick, Laurey Bennett-Levy, Mark Henry Samuel, Michelle Robinson, Naomi Spector, Rebecca Youseff, RefectSpaceGallery, Senator Anthony L. Portantino, series, Solo Exhibition, Solo Show, Stacie B. London, String, Suzanne Voss, Tapestry, Textile, Textile Art, Textiles, triptych

“I Can’t I Won’t I Will I Do”, Revisited

November 24, 2023 By Debra Disman

Gene Ogami photographs

Filed Under: ARTISTS, Artists' Books, Exhibitions, Presentations, TEXTILE/FIBER, Women Artists, Work Tagged With: Anahid Oshagan, Ara Oshagan, Books, City of Glendale, Curators Ara Oshagan and  Anahid Oshagan, Exhibition design, Fiber, Fiber Art, Frida Cano, Gallery show, Gallery sow, Gene Ogami, Glendale Arts and Culture, Glendale Central Library, Glendale Library Arts and Culture, Handmade Books, Mark Henry Samuel, RefectSpaceGallery, Solo Exhibition, Solo Show, Stacie B. London, Textile Art, Textiles

Sharing Shows: Summer 2023

July 23, 2023 By Debra Disman

I am honored to participate in several shows this summer, and share a bit about them below.


SAFEKEEPING 
SAFEKEEPING Artist Talk


Text/Message

Brand 51


Engulfed
About Engulfed


Contemplating Boundaries


Fiber Art international


Material World: A Contemporary Fiber Exhibition

From Fiber…

Filed Under: ARTISTS, Exhibitions, TEXTILE/FIBER, Women Artists, Work Tagged With: 108 Contemporary Gallery, Anita Fields, Ann Coddington, Ann Johnston, Ara Oshagan, Arts Council of Fayetteville, ARTWORKS Center For COntemporary Art, Brand 51 Annual National Juried Exhibition of Works on Paper, Brand Library and Art Center, Fiber, Fiber Art, From Fiber..., Group Exhibition, Judith Content, Juried Shows, Kristine Schomaker, Material World Exhibition, Material World: A Contemporary Fiber Art Exhibition, Safekeeping, Sarah LaBarre, SCA, SDA, Sebastopol Center for the Arts, Shoebox Projects LA, Springfield Art Association, Surface Design Association, Textile, Textile Art, Textiles

EXHIBITIONISTA:  Brand 51 Annual National Exhibition of Works on Paper!

May 6, 2023 By Debra Disman

I am thrilled to be a part of the  Brand 51 Annual National Exhibition of Works on Paper at the  Brand Library and Art Center, Glendale, CA, juried by  Ara Oshagan

The Associates of Brand Library & Art Center in Glendale, California, announces its 51st Annual National Juried Exhibition of Works on Paper. This year’s juror is internationally known photographer, curator, author, and speaker, Ara Oshagan. A resident of Glendale, Ara is the co-curator of ReflectSpace Gallery at Glendale Central Library. Since 2017, ReflectSpace Gallery has installed nearly forty exhibitions focused on current and historical social issues that have local, national and international impact. As co-curator, Ara exhibits contemporary art as well as archives, employing a vast range of media from drawing to photography, to painting, projection, sound, installation, public art, technology-based and interactive media. His artistic practice demonstrates a keen eye and appreciation for conceptual as well as representational art.

Catalog: A printed catalog of the exhibition will be available for purchase and will be accessible online.

Sales: Unless specified not for sale (NFS), all artworks will be offered for sale. A portion of all sales will benefit the Associates of Brand Library & Art Center.

The Associates of Brand Library & Art Center is an all-volunteer non-profit that raises funds to support the extensive free and public events offered at Brand including gallery exhibitions, classical and popular music performances, film screenings, dance performances, and activities for people of all ages. Entry fees and commissions from the sale of artworks from Brand 51 will be used to continue the important cultural programming that Brand Library & Art Center brings to the community.

Contact Debra Thompson, Brand 51 Exhibition Chair: [email protected]

Tagged With: Ara Oshagan, ARTIST'S BOOKS, Associates of Brand Library & Art Center, Black, Black artwork, Black Book, Black on Black on Black, Black Sculpture, brand, Brand 51, Brand 51 Annual National Juried Exhibition of Works on Paper, Brand Associates, Brand Associates Annual National Juried Exhibition of Works on Paper, Contemporary Artwork, Cord, Environment, Fiber, HEMP CORD, Los Angeles Contemporary Artists, Mixed media, Monochrome, Mulberry paper, Paper, Printing, Sculpture, Stitching, Torrent and Tangle: Keep Your House in Order Website:

EXHIBITIONISTA: BRAND 51!!! Third Time’s a Charm….

May 1, 2023 By Debra Disman


I am honored to be in the Brand 51 Annual National Juried Exhibition of Works on Paper which will be on view at Brand Library and Art Center in Glendale, California, from July 8 through September 1, 2023. I had the pleasure of participating in 2019; as well as in 2021 in collaboration with artist Luciana Abait.

The Associates of Brand Library & Art Center in Glendale, California, announces its 51st Annual National Juried Exhibition of Works on Paper. This year’s juror is internationally known photographer, curator, author, and speaker, Ara Oshagan. A resident of Glendale, Ara is the co-curator of ReflectSpace Gallery  at Glendale Central Library. Since 2017, ReflectSpace Gallery has installed nearly forty exhibitions focused on current and historical social issues that have local, national and international impact. As co-curator, Ara exhibits contemporary art as well as archives, employing a vast range of media from drawing to photography, to painting, projection, sound, installation, public art, technology-based and interactive media. His artistic practice demonstrates a keen eye and appreciation for conceptual as well as representational art.

A printed catalog of the exhibition will be available for purchase and will be accessible online.

The Associates of Brand Library & Art Center is an all-volunteer non-profit that raises funds to support the extensive free and public events offered at Brand including gallery exhibitions, classical and popular music performances, film screenings, dance performances, and activities for people of all ages. Entry fees and commissions from the sale of artworks from Brand 51 will be used to continue the important cultural programming that Brand Library & Art Center brings to the community.

 

Tagged With: Ara Oshagan, ARTIST'S BOOKS, Associates of Brand Library & Art Center, Black, Black artwork, Black Book, Black on Black on Black, Black Sculpture, Brand 51, Brand 51 Annual National Juried Exhibition of Works on Paper, Brand Associates Annual National Juried Exhibition of Works on Paper, Contemporary Artwork, Cord, Environment, Fiber, HEMP CORD, Los Angeles Contemporary Artists, Mixed media, Monochrome, Mulberry paper, Paper, Printing, Sculpture, Stitching, Torrent and Tangle: Keep Your House in Order

Walking Through “I Can’t I Won’t I Will I Do”

May 1, 2023 By Debra Disman

Photographer Gene Ogami documented my 2023 solo show, “I Can’t I Won’t I Will I Do” at ReflectSpace Gallery in the Glendale Central Library.
The ten images below provide a virtual walk-through of the exhibition, which was, as I shared with the curators, Ara and Anahid Oshagan, a dream come true that I did not even know I had.

Gratitude to them, to Gene, and to so many others who supported this realization.


Walking into the meditative gallery space from the main library.


Catching some of the larger pieces through the vitrine reflections.


Capturing exhibition signage, the “Concurrencies” artists’ book, the two Concurrencies hangings, and “Throes of the Body” in the vitrine.


A favorite corner of the Curators, Installers and myself!


“Three Sisters and Their Mother” on the wall, hanging over the titular work, “I Can’t I Won’t I Will I Do” on shelf.


“Finally, and Just For A Minute” suspended. Black on black on black is challenging to photograph.


A shot that manages to include over half the pieces in the show.


Gene was able to present me surrounded and supported by my works.


We were able to employ the hallway to present other works, and enlargements of the images featured in my artists’ book, “Concurrencies”, comparing the lives and works of artists Charlotte Salomon and Eva Hesse.


The Journey Continues.
In gratitude and appreciation.

Filed Under: ARTISTS, Artists' Books, Exhibitions, TEXTILE/FIBER, Women Artists, Work Tagged With: "I Can't I Won't I Will I Do", Anahid Oshagan, Ara Oshagan, Art Gallery, Book as Sculpture, Books, Charlotte Salomon, City of Glendale, Concurrencies, Curators Ara Oshagan and  Anahid Oshagan, Documentary Photography, Eva Hesse, Fiber, Fiber Art, Gene Ogami, Glendale Arts and Culture, Glendale Central Library, Glendale Library Arts and Culture, Handmade Books, Hanging, Mark Henry Samuel, Poetry Consults, RefectSpaceGallery, ReflectSpace, ReflectSpaceGallery, Sewing, Solo Exhibition, Solo Show, Stitching, Tapestry, Textile Art, Textiles, Tina Demirdjian

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