Debra Disman

Artist

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Teaching Artist

The Work of Our Hands: Hand Building with Clay 1

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Creating masks in our Hand Building with Clay class at McKinley Elementary after school with the CREST Enrichment program has been a joy. With majority boys in the class, the tempo had to be high energy.

Students learned how to “pound out” slabs (flat) pieces of clay the week before, then created “armatures” (support structures) of newspaper, over which they stretched their slabs, so that their masks would be three dimensional.

It was exciting to watch the students develop their mask characters, inevitably thinking in terms of story…inspired by characters from film, television, and books, but always their own. Students used coil, scoring, incising and even pinch pot techniques to create their mask characters.


Creating detail.

 


Two faces, in one?


Creating texture!


Inspired by the zombie craze.


Our one young girl in class that day created…a self-portrait?


Creative use of coils…


Figuring it out…


A very coherent expression.


Tattoo?


What is going on here? Perhaps this young maker is working out his feelings through creating.

It would not be the first time…

All hail, the healing powers of Art.

Bookmaking at Verdugo Hills High School with VAPA Students

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I will lead bookmaking workshops with Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA) English and Art students at Verdugo Hills High School in Tujunga, CA, supported by the Los Angeles Unified School District.

Students will create one-of-kind BOOKS by hand, and develop them with print and visual media to create unique works of writing, visual art and craft.

I will work with Seniors in the VAPA English class, and Freshmen in the VAPA art class.

These workshops are for specific VAPA students at Verdugo Hills High School, and will take place in VAPA classes during school hours.

Bookmaking at Verdugo Hills High School

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I will lead bookmaking workshops with magnet (VAPA) English and Art students at Verdugo Hills High School in Tujunga, CA, supported by the Los Angeles Unified School District.

Students will create one-of-kind FLAG BOOKS, and develop them through “found writing” they produce through pulling letters, words and sentences from existing print media sources such as magazines and other books.

I will work with Seniors in the VAPA English class, and Freshmen in the VAPA art class.

These workshops are for specific VAPA students at Verdugo Hills High School, and will take place in VAPA classes during school hours.

 

Arts Instructor at the Marlborough Summer School

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Arts Instructor at the Marlborough Summer School

I will be teaching a range of classes for the Marlborough Summer School this summer, including “Creating Unique Handmade Books”, “Art and Writing”, “Building A World”, “Red Yellow Blue” (all about color!), “Fairy Tales” (fanciful bookmaking for young children), and “Make Your Own Books”.

This is an intensive, daily, five week program, which draws students from all over Los Angeles County. Follow the link to find out more!

Family Bookmaking Workshops at LACMA

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Family Bookmaking Workshops at LACMA

A series of one day Family Bookmaking Workshops at the Los Angeles Country Museum of Art!
Join us 10AM – 1PM Saturdays, July 21, 28, August 4, 11 and 18.

Learn how to create fun book structures including The Flag Book, The Folded Fan Book, The Accordion Fold/Concertina Book, and The Tunnel Book.

Each project will include an exploration of a special artwork at the Museum which relates to our bookmaking project for that workshop.

All materials included.

 

 

 

In Resonant Residence (14)

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In Resonant Residence (14)

I formally began Studio Residency at the Camera Obscura Art Lab

in Santa Monica Wednesday January 10th, and completed it Saturday, April 21, 2018.  I shared the sunlit space, located within a beautiful Mid-century building overlooking Palisades Park, Santa Monica Beach and the blue Pacific with textile artist and fellow Studio Artist-in-Residence Huong Nguyen.
“About the Art Lab and Camera Obscura

1450 Exterior
Vintage Camera Obscura
 
 
 
 
Step inside the Camera Obscura Art Lab and you’ll find a welcoming space with fantastic views of Santa Monica Bay and the Pier. The Camera is located in a midcentury time capsule in Palisades Park between Broadway and Santa Monica Blvd on what was once the site of the Pacific Electric Railway’s North Beach Station. Designed by noted architect Weldon J. Fulton (who’s work can be found around town including the classic Camera Obscura sign and font, the Montana and Fairview branch libraries, and the former Zucky’s building on Wilshire Blvd), the building’s exterior features walls clad in chunky Palos Verdes stone, glass walls, sloping roofs, and projecting canopies and rafter beams. It was donated to the City of Santa Monica by Marcellus Joslyn in 1955.”

The huge studio windows look out on palms, walkways and a huge assortment of passers by, strollers, park wanderers and beach combers. The Studio is a magical place to work.

My thirteenth workshop, April 7, 2018, Creating Sculptural Books offered participants an opportunity to walk a bit on the wilder side, and create something new while learning some skills in the process.

We began by constructing what I call the “fan book” structure…an accordion folded spine, with front and back covers, and pages added to the same side of each fold.

It is a version of the flag book, invented by renowned book artist Hedi Kyle, but employs full-sized pages that fan out from the spine in the same direction, rather then the zig zig alternating pattern of the endlessly inventive flag book.

Then folks added to that structure, used it as a jumping off point if you will.

Others focused more specifically on embellishment…this was the way “in” for them.

Book artist Rachel Curry made a big “traditional” flag book, and adorned it with patterns using paint pens.

Step-by-step into new territory, in a safe space.

Ingredients for discovery.