Debra Disman

Artist

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Sebastopol Center for the Arts

Art Centers and the Like: The HeART of Art

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Art and Cultural Centers are amazing places.

They are CENTERS. Centers of art and culture to be sure, but also centers of learning, personal and collective growth, education, care, community, cooperation and love.

Amazing to show in, but especially amazing in the services they provide, the opportunities they offer and the roles they play for their near and far communities.

I am going to explore these worthy and precious resources and entities in the next few posts, but firstly, I need to get my arms around them in a big, collective heARTfelt hug!

I will add to, or write further interactions of this post over time.  I would also like to write about Libraries, College and University Art Galleries and smaller galleries as exhibition spaces and hubs of community and world culture.

These are the art and cultural centers I have shown in over the last few years, essentially since 2018:
(I included some very special organizations such as Blue Roof Studios, Shoebox Arts and ArtShare LA in Los Angeles, CA, “We Are The Arts”/The Arts Council of Fayetteville|Cumberland County in Fayetteville, NC, the Hera Educational Foundation and Gallery in Wakefield RI, and the Springfield Art Association, in Springfield, IL, even though they don’t have the word “CENTER” in their monikers, as I believe they serve many of the same heART-FULL functions as those that do.)

18th Street Arts Center,  Santa Monica, CA

O’Hanlon Center for the Arts, Mill Valley, CA

Webster Arts, Webster Groves, MO

Intersect Arts Center, Saint Louis, MO

The Dairy Barn Arts Center O’Bleness Gallery, Athens, OH

Umpqua Valley Arts, Roseville, OR

 The Cultural Center of Cape Cod, South Yarmouth, MA

Springfield Art Association, Springfield, IL

The Korean Culture Center, Los Angeles, CA

“We Are The Arts”/The Arts Council of Fayetteville|Cumberland County, Fayetteville, NC

Artworks Center for Contemporary  Art, Loveland, CO

ArtShare LA, Los Angeles, CA

Shoebox Arts, Los Angeles, CA

Kelso Art Center, University of Incarnate Word, San Antonio, TX

Tubac Center for the Arts, Tubac, AZ

Sebastopol Center for the Arts, Sebastopol, CA

The Irvine Fine Arts Center, Irvine, CA
  
The Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts, Lubbock, TX

Hera Educational Foundation and Gallery in Wakefield RI

Blue Roof Studios, Los Angeles, CA

San Francisco Center for the Book, San Francisco, CA

The Center for Contemporary Art, Bedminister, NJ

Yeiser Art Center, Paducah, KY

Brand Library and Art Center, Glendale, CA

The Minnesota Center for Book Arts, Minneapolis, MN;

Foothills Art Center, Golden, CO

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.

 

 

 

Boxed Set: Pulp, Paper and Profusion

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I am moved and honored to have my work chosen by the Sebastopol Center for the Arts to grace one of the notecards in a boxed set designed to share about, promote and commemorate the show: Pulp: Book and Paper Arts presented in the Spring of 2024.

Thank  you to SebArts for this opportunity!

 

 

EXHIBITIONISTA: PULP: BOOK & PAPER ARTS

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I am thrilled to participate for the second time in:

PULP: Book & Paper Arts

Book Arts: Handmade artist’s books or book art objects, showing excellence in bookmaking or altered book techniques, including books made of any medium (not just paper), as well as the art & craft of letterpress printing, bookbinding, book art sculptures, etc. 

Paper Arts: including innovative or traditional explorations of paper sculpture, papermaking, etc.

The Sebastopol Center for the Arts is one of the most vibrant arts organizations in Northern, California. Since 1988 it has engaged and inspired the community through presentations of contemporary art, music, dance, film, and literary events. Through classes and workshops it strives to educate and deepen the interest in the arts for adults, teens and children. The Center is located in a 17,800 square foot building in downtown Sebastopol where it offers a large variety of arts programs and is a creative force in California. Sebastopol, located 60 miles north of San Francisco, is one of America’s premier destinations for food, wine, and the arts, attracting thousands of visitors each year.

Juror: Donna Seager of Seager Gray Gallery:
A native of New Orleans, Donna Seager’s background is in Art History. She received her
education at the University of Texas. She began in the art business in 1978, working in galleries
in New Orleans and was the director of a gallery in Boston before moving to California in 1989.
She continued to work in galleries in the Bay Area until 2005 when she opened Donna Seager Gallery. In 2011, she partnered with Suzanne Gray to form Seager Gray Gallery and moved the
gallery to Mill Valley where they are a cornerstone of the Marin arts community. Seager has distinguished herself for her discerning eye and commitment to the arts in her area. She has given lectures on the art of the book at international fairs in Miami and San Francisco and curated an exhibition at the Brooklyn Public Library entitled “Ten Years of Artists’ Books” and “This is Not a Book, Chapter 2” for the San Jose Institute of Contemporary Art. She has served on the board of the San Francisco Art Dealers Association and The San Francisco Center for the Book.

Sharing Shows: Summer 2023

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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…

EXHIBITIONISTA: “INTERNATIONAL FIBER ARTS XI” at Sebastopol Center for the Arts

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I am thrilled to be a part of International Fiber Arts XI!

The 11th Biennial Fiber Art juried exhibition is held every two years at Sebastopol Center for the Arts. This outstanding celebration of fiber arts presents the work of artists from all over the world. Over 3,000 attend this well publicized and reviewed exhibit. This show is held in the SCA gallery and available virtually online on the SCA website. The exhibition is co-sponsored by Sebastopol Center for the Arts and Surface Design Association.

International Fiber Arts XI is a juried exhibition presenting a distinct approach to innovative and traditional fiber techniques, and contemporary concepts for the
use of traditional and unusual materials. The selected two and three-dimensional works invite the viewer to experience the many facets of fiber art.

Jurors are distinguished fiber artists Judith Content and Ann Johnston.