Debra Disman

Artist

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Tactile

Southwest Surfaces at Tubac Center of the Arts

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I was thrilled to be part of:
Surface Design Association’s  Southwest Regional Exhibition at Tubac Center of the Arts!

Annie Lopez, Juror

 

Exhibiting Artists

Elizabeth Abaravich, Amie Adelman, Lisa Jean Allswede, Jim Barry, Keri Bas, Julie Bates, Daiva Bergman Harris, Blair Cahill, Jan Caldwell, Cael Chappell, Claudia Cocco, Vicki Conley, Sue Conner, Beth Cunningham, Debra Disman, Diana Fox, Dellis Frank, Amelia Greco-Welden, Michele Hardy, Jackie Heupel, Stephanie Hilvitz, Dong Kyu Kim, Molly Koehn, Julie Kornblum, Mary-Ellen Latino, Karon Leigh, Nancy Lemke, Christine LoFaso, Viviana Lombrozo, Jeannie Mehl, Christine Miller, Jaya Miller, Kathy Nida, Marty Ornish, Nancy Peterson, Michael Rohde, Connie Rohman, Tamara Scott-Anderson, Danielle Shelley, Asher Sinclaire, Bonnie Smith, Karen Smith, Nancy Jo Smith, Karin Soderholm, Meredith Strauss, Sheila Tymon, Shelly White,Peggy Wiedemann, Emily Yarborough

I showed:
Excavation of the Interior”, 2021, 12 x 28 x 12.5″, wood, mulberry paper, watercolor paper, hemp cord, canvas, muslin

Annie Lopez, Juror
Annie Lopez creates narrative work presenting a dialogue about racism, stereotypes, the local art world, personal relationships and family. Most known for cyanotype work, she’s based in Phoenix, AZ.

Juror’s Statement

I was privileged to see some incredible art and had many “why didn’t I think of that?” moments.

Selecting work was challenging. My approach was for the exhibition to have a personality, not a theme. The final selections resonated with me; made a statement or displayed unusual approaches with words, design, or techniques. These works showcase the artist’s imagination through a variety of technical skills, and each provide insight into the maker

CONCURRENCIES: Charlotte Salomon and Eva Hesse: The Visitors

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On June 25th, 2022 I held an open studio to share works created for my 2021-22 Santa Monica Artist Project Fellowship:

Charlotte Salomon and Eva Hesse: Genius, Trauma and the Invention of New Forms of Visual Art in Response to the Holocaust

Employing research, artistic production, public engagement, the project investigates, compares and links the lives and the groundbreaking work of Jewish women artists Charlotte Salomon and Eva Hesse on the basis of their shared experience of trauma and loss through the Jewish Holocaust, the remarkably similar intimate traumas of their families (both lost their mothers to suicide), their invention of new forms of visual art through which I posit they respond to and attempt to cope with these traumas,  their early deaths, and the emotional involvement of each with a charismatic and powerful male artist who proved to be influential, even pivotal in the development of their work and artistic/creative breakthroughs.

Themes of the project include being a woman artist, being a Jewish women artist, being an artist during or affected by a profoundly turbulent time in history, the relationship between internal and external turbulence and the creative act and the transformative power of the creative process:  the triumph of the imagination as opposed to the triumph of the will.

On a broader scale, the project examines, through these two geniuses, ways in which the creative process can transform traumatic pasts, and how trauma can elicit the creation of new forms, voices and materials that outlast their makers and continue to reverberate throughout the ages, inspiring posterity.

As part of my Fellowship project commitment, I created a series of works responding to these artists: their oeuvre, their lives, their concurrencies. I was thrilled to welcome friends, colleagues and students to share the works and say hello!  (All images by Steve Hankins Photography)

 




Thank you all, and thank you Steve Hankins, for your beautiful photography and capturing of the event.

CONCURRENCIES: Charlotte Salomon and Eva Hesse: The Works

By

On June 25th, 2022 I held an open studio to share works created for my 2021-22 Santa Monica Artist Project Fellowship:

Charlotte Salomon and Eva Hesse: Genius, Trauma and the Invention of New Forms of Visual Art in Response to the Holocaust

Employing research, artistic production, public engagement, the project investigates, compares and links the lives and the groundbreaking work of Jewish women artists Charlotte Salomon and Eva Hesse on the basis of their shared experience of trauma and loss through the Jewish Holocaust, the remarkably similar intimate traumas of their families (both lost their mothers to suicide), their invention of new forms of visual art through which I posit they respond to and attempt to cope with these traumas,  their early deaths, and the emotional involvement of each with a charismatic and powerful male artist who proved to be influential, even pivotal in the development of their work and artistic/creative breakthroughs.

Themes of the project include being a woman artist, being a Jewish women artist, being an artist during or affected by a profoundly turbulent time in history, the relationship between internal and external turbulence and the creative act and the transformative power of the creative process:  the triumph of the imagination as opposed to the triumph of the will.

On a broader scale, the project examines, through these two geniuses, ways in which the creative process can transform traumatic pasts, and how trauma can elicit the creation of new forms, voices and materials that outlast their makers and continue to reverberate throughout the ages, inspiring posterity.

As part of my Fellowship project commitment, I created a series of works responding to these artists: their oeuvre, their lives, their concurrencies, some of which I share here: (All images by Steve Hankins Photography)

Working title: “Concurrencies I“, 2022, repurposed denim, linen thread, gold thread, hemp cord, varnish


Working title: “Concurrencies II“, begun, 2022 (unfinished), repurposed denim, linen thread, gold thread, varnish , to be developed


Working title, “Finally“, 2022, canvas, burlap, acrylic paint, hemp cord


Working title, “Finally“, 2022, canvas, burlap, acrylic paint, hemp cord, (details)


“I Can’t I Won’t I will I Do“, 2022, repurposed cotton table runner, hemp cord, acrylic paint


“It’s Not Black and White“, 2021, Bookboard, mulberry paper, repurposed typewriter tape, canvas, hemp cord, (exterior)


“It’s Not Black and White“, 2021, Bookboard, mulberry paper, repurposed typewriter tape, canvas, hemp cord, (exterior/interior)


“Forest Through The Trees“, 2021, bookboard, hemp cord, watercolor paper, acrylic paint, wood, canvas, repurposed typewriter tape, lace, (exterior)


“Forest Through The Trees“, 2021, bookboard, hemp cord, watercolor paper, acrylic paint, wood, canvas, repurposed typewriter tape, lace, (detail)


Working title: “Charlotte Salomon-Eva Hesse: Concurrencies“, 2022, repurposed family album, burlap, linen thread, collage/paper,  (exterior)