Debra Disman

Artist

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Group Shows

Showing (love) Around

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We Are Doing It All Wrong, Edward A. Dixon Gallery, Dayton, OH, Juror/Curator: Ed Dixon:   “The exhibition is a challenge to artists and viewers to recognize, react and learn about the many ways humanity continually fails itself.  These issues are not always mainstream and sometimes are hidden.” Jurors: Ed Dixon/Stacy Kranitz/Judith L. Huacuja
See the SHOW!
See the VIDEO!

It is not only a joy to “show around” in group exhibitions at various venues around the country, it is a gratifying, enriching  experience,  and a heartwarming one at that, to discover, interact with and support so many inspiring and dedicated individuals,  organizations, endeavors, missions and visions. I meet new folks, but also “run into” friends and colleagues that “show up” in some of the same places: showing at some of the the same shows, sharing in some of the same artist talks and panels, featured in some of the same catalogues and publications. It is exciting to connect, and see both not only an overlap of interests materially and thematically, but also how we all approach things differently, and can learn from one another.

For example, I am currently showing at:
Word and Weft: Visualizing the Word, Webster Arts, Webster Groves, MO, Juror: Noriko Yuasa 
Women. Defining Our Representation, Black House Artist, Juror/Curator: Ellen Mattesi (online)  
We Are Doing It All Wrong, Edward A. Dixon Gallery, Dayton, OH, Jurors: Ed Dixon/Stacy Kranitz/Judith L. Huacuja 
Evidence of Joy, Intersect Arts Center, Saint Louis, MO, Curator: April Parvitz  
Soliloquy, presented by The Bridge Arts Foundation at The Scholarts Selection, San Gabriel, CA
Jurors: Charles Christopher Hill, Xin Song, Curator: Tia Xu  
Whisper, Verum Ultimum Gallery, Portland, OR, Curator: Jennifer Gullia Cutshall  (catalogue)
Interplay, presented by the Surface Design Association at The Dairy Barn Arts Center O’Bleness Gallery, Athens, OH,  Juror: Annet Couwenberg
Northern National Art Competition, Nicolet College Art Gallery, Rhinelander, WI, Juror: Debra Brehmer 
The Circular Ritual of Spring, BG Gallery, Santa Monica, CA, Curator: Susan Lizotte (online)

And earlier this year:
Midway Marvels,ArtBarLA, Los Angeles, CA, Curator: Randi Matushevitz
Materiality Matters, Umpqua Valley Arts, Roseville, OR, Juror Panel: UVA Staff and Pacific NW professionals
Pulp: Book and Paper Arts, Sebastopol Center for the Arts, Sebastopol, CA, Juror: Donna Seager
Fantastic Fibers 2024, Yeiser Art Center, Paducah, KY, Juror: Sandro Tiberi, (catalogue) 
String Theory, The Cultural Center of Cape Cod, South Yarmouth, MA, Curator: Molly Demeulenaere  
Art of the Word, Sasse Museum of Art, Pomona, CA, Jurors: Fatemeh Burnes, Maurice Quillinan, Niamh Cunningham (catalogue)
By the Book,  Artopia Gallery, Arcadia, CA, Curator: Rosie Getz

Through this experience I am able to be exposed to and interact with :
Individuals: artists, curators, critics, collectors, gallery, museum, art center, library and academic/university directors/staff (on all different levels of responsibility and experience and in varying roles,  offices and positions)
Organizations: galleries, museums, art centers, universities/academic institutions, artist studios and alternative spaces (of different sizes, renown, reputation, influence and “status” in the “art world” and world at-large)

I plan to highlight and share about various of these individuals and entities over the next several posts. I will share particularly about Art Centers, which are an enormous source of vitality, creation, care and joy throughout the country and beyond. xxxooo

I begin with Gallerist Ed Dixon, in whose show We Are Doing It All Wrong I am honored to be in.  Presented at the Edward A. Dixon Galleryin Dayton, OH. Of the show says Owner/Curator: Ed Dixon:  “The exhibition is a challenge to artists and viewers to recognize, react and learn about the many ways humanity continually fails itself.  These issues are not always mainstream and sometimes are hidden.” The illustrious jurors Ed Dixon/Stacy Kranitz/Judith L. Huacuja hold a wealth of knowledge, expertise, care and passion among them in addition to many accomplishments.

In a time of such fraught difference, fear, and loathing, it is heartening and illuminating to see and be a part of all of these individuals and entities, making a difference. I have to feel that that all of our work, no matter what the outcome, does make a difference.

Thank you to You all.

 

 

 

“Fifty Years of Fiber” Show Catalogue!

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It was an honor to participate in:

See the online exhibition  catalogue HERE!

The annual Fiber Artists of San Antonio 2022 Art Exhibition was held November 6 through December 9 2022, at the Kelso Art Center, University of Incarnate Word, San Antonio, TX. The theme of the exhibit, “50 Years of Fiber Art,” celebrated the organization’s half century history. The show presented fiber artists from across the U.S. considering each decade since the 1970s as inspiration for their fiber art work.

*DEFINITION OF FIBER, as extracted from Merriam-Webster Dictionary: 1. A thread or structure or object resembling a thread; 2. A slender and greatly elongated natural or synthetic filament) such as wool, cotton, gold, asbestos, glass or rayon) which typically can be spun into yarn; 3. Material made of fibers (includes paper), fabric, plastic or metal fibers, tapestry, art cloth.

The exhibition was juried by Paula Owen.
Owen, president emerita of Southwest School of Art, began her tenure in1996, following 11 years as the Director of the Visual Arts Center in Richmond, Virginia. Under her leadership the school’s size, scope, and reputation grew significantly, and in 2014 a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree program was added. In 2022 Southwest School of Art and University of Texas at San Antonio announced a merger to create a new and expanded school of art.

Owen has served as curator of numerous exhibits and on national and regional boards and panels, including the Pew Artist Fellowships, the Bush Foundation Fellowships, and the National Endowment for the Arts. She is a published arts writer and co-authored the book, Objects and Meaning: New Perspec5ves on Art and Craft:, published by Scarecrow Press. Most recently, her essay “Fabrication and Encounter: When Content is a Verb,” was published in Maria Elena Buzcek’s book, Extra/Ordinary: Craft and Contemporary Art.

Owen earned an MFA in painting and printmaking from Virginia Commonwealth University and continues to show her work in group and solo shows throughout the nation.

I was thrilled to win the second place award for my work:
“Rent Wound Tear, Mend Heal Repair”, 2022, 64 x 68″ (dimensions variable), Triptych Installation
This exhibition was the first time this triptych was shown outside of Los Angeles.

See the online exhibition  catalogue HERE and see the wondrous works of all the accomplished artists in whose company I was honored to show.
Thank you to all involved.

Sharing Shows: Arizona, California, Texas

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Excavation of the Interior, 2021, 12 x 28 x 12.5″ (wood, mulberry paper, hemp cord, canvas, muslin)

 


Chromatic Interactions: The Golden Thread, 2020, 76 x 90 x 1.5″, mixed media installation utilizing file cards written and drawn upon by Craft Contemporary Museum patrons participating in my commissioned interactive artists’ book project: Chromatic Interactions, (File cards, gold thread, pencil and crayon)

 


Rent Wound Tear, Mend Heal Repair, 2022, 64 x 68″ (dimensions variable), Triptych Installation, (canvas, acrylic paint, hemp cord, lace, string)

EXHIBITIONISTA: “50 Years of Fiber”

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The annual Fiber Artists of San Antonio 2022 Art Exhibition will be held November 6 through December 9, at the Kelso Art Center, University of Incarnate Word, San Antonio, TX. The theme of the exhibit, “50 Years of Fiber Art,” celebrates the organization’s half century history. The show presents fiber artists from across the U.S. considering each decade since the 1970s as inspiration for their fiber art work.

*DEFINITION OF FIBER, as extracted from Merriam-Webster Dictionary: 1. A thread or structure or object resembling a thread; 2. A slender and greatly elongated natural or synthetic filament) such as wool, cotton, gold, asbestos, glass or rayon) which typically can be spun into yarn; 3. Material made of fibers (includes paper), fabric, plastic or metal fibers, tapestry, art cloth.

The exhibition is juried by Paula Owen.
Owen, president emerita of Southwest School of Art, began her tenure in1996, following 11 years as the Director of the Visual Arts Center in Richmond, Virginia. Under her leadership the school’s size, scope, and reputation grew significantly, and in 2014 a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree program was added. In 2022 Southwest School of Art and University of Texas at San Antonio announced a merger to create a new and expanded school of art.

Owen has served as curator of numerous exhibits and on national and regional boards and panels, including the Pew Artist Fellowships, the Bush Foundation Fellowships, and the National Endowment for the Arts. She is a published arts writer and co-authored the book, Objects and Meaning: New Perspec5ves on Art and Craft:, published by Scarecrow Press. Most recently, her essay “Fabrication and Encounter: When Content is a Verb,” was published in Maria Elena Buzcek’s book, Extra/Ordinary: Craft and Contemporary Art.

Owen earned an MFA in painting and printmaking from Virginia Commonwealth University and continues to show her work in group and solo shows throughout the nation.


I am thrilled to be showing:
“Rent Wound Tear, Mend Heal Repair”
The first time this triptych will be shown outside of Los Angeles.

Stand, Sit, Hang, Lay….Works Exhibited This and That Way (More)

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I am fascinated by the many ways in which works can be shown. Here are a few…



“Finally and Just for a Minute“, 2022, hanging from the ceiling in my studio at 18th Street Art Center (Olympic Campus) in Santa Monica, CA. (Canvas, burlap, hemp cord, acrylic paint, ribbon) (Pictured, the Los Angeles-based artist Randi Matushevitz)


“Rent Wound Tear, Mend Heal Repair”, 2022,  hanging on wall in slight relief, in the exhibition “Collective Acts of Peace” at the 18th Street Art Center Airport Campus  Slipstream Gallery in Santa Monica, CA. (Canvas, string, hemp cord, lace, acrylic paint)



“Womb”, 2020, hanging from the ceiling in 18th Street Art Center’s Slipstream Gallery, in my studio at 18th Street Art Center’s Olympic Campus, Santa Monica, CA, and in the Arts at Blue Roof Summer Festival,  in the “Please Touch” exhibition at Blue Roof Studios in South Los Angeles. (Plastic hula hoop, raw canvass, jute cord)


“Unfolding Possibilities“, 2021,  on pedestal in the exhibition “Recovery Justice: Being Well“,  at the 18th Street Art Center Airport Campus  Slipstream Gallery
in Santa Monica, CA. (Mulberry paper, sewing thread, gold thread)


“Chromatic Interactions: The Golden Thread“, 2020, hanging on the wall in my studio at 18th Street Art Center (Olympic Campus) in Santa Monica, CA.
(file cards, sewing thread, gold thread,  markers, crayons, pencils)

Stand, Sit, Hang, Lay….Works Exhibited This and That Way

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I have had the opportunity to participate in a number of exhibitions this year, and am fascinated by the many ways in which works can be shown…here are a few!

Table Top: my collaboration with artist Luciana Abait: “drift“, an accordion-fold artists’ book shown in the “ALL MEDIA 2022″ exhibition
at the Irvine Fine Arts Center.

“Excavation of the Interior“, shown in the “Fantastic Fibers 2022” exhibition at the Yeiser Art Center on a pedestal.

Two works shown in different ways in the “PULP: Paper and Book Arts” exhibition at the Sebastopol Center for the Arts:
“Prairie” shown on the postcard and website, and on a pedestal in the show,

and, “Before the Fall“, suspended from the ceiling in front of a wall!

Finally, “Burning Bush” displayed on a pedestal, on a stand, and under glass in the
“34th Annual McNeese National Works On Paper Exhibition” at McNeese State University.

More to come…the sky…is the limit?!?!?