Dancing on My Grave, mixed media collage, acrylic, ink on stretched canvas

Deborah Gorman is a multimedia artist, writer, and Zen Buddhist practitioner. Based in Richmond, California, the artist creates energetic paintings and collage, as well as leading artistic workshops that help others use art and writing to work through difficult issues.

Nature Nuture Series (7), acrylic on stretched canvas

Deborah’s works are often layered, and her paintings and collages both have a similar and cohesive aesthetic. Using a palette of bright, warm colors, saturated where they need to be but often subdued, Deborah imbued each of her works with a sense of play and experimentation. Embellished with frantic lines and a sense of almost-randomness, these works seem to be more about raw emotionality than projecting a particular narrative.

The front page of Deborah's website

I especially enjoy Deborah’s few collages where faces, often photographic, stare out of image frame. They seem to lend a definite personality to the works, making them more easily relatable. The artist’s works are sometimes of a spiritual nature - Buddhist, Christian or otherwise. Working at a hospice, Deborah’s practice is naturally intertwined with contemplation of both life and death.

Auntie's Alzheimer, mixed media on drywall, collage, photograph, straw, gut, rose thorns on drywall