Featured Artist - Deborah Blackwell
Most people know Deborah Blackwell as the Founder and Executive Director of Studio 84, a nonprofit art studio, gallery and store in Whitewater, Wisconsin. This is not surprising, as she spends all of her time and energy nurturing and marketing the art of her Studio 84 patrons. Not everyone knows that she is an accomplished artist in her own right.
Deborah said, “I became interested in art when I was a young mother of three girls. I had an ‘I ran away with the circus’ moment that changed my life. It wasn't the circus but rather I hooked up with a local theater company and started doing set design and scene painting with them and there my love of art grew immensely. Then as my kids grew older I started auditing classes at UW-Whitewater. I finally made the decision to get my degree and was in college at the same time as my oldest daughter and while my youngest was still in high school. I remember dragging art supplies to her orchestra rehearsals in Milwaukee so I could get my assignments done while waiting.”
“It was my last two years of college that I added the Arts Management minor. I saw a notice in the art office about the minor, where I was working that summer, and in two weeks I was signed up and taking a financial accounting class as part of the minor. I also took a summer course with the Small Business Development Center on writing a business plan so I could begin the idea of the Studio.
Eventually I got my degree in 2008 and in 2009 I opened Studio 84. It was a whirlwind of a last year in college, trying to get art prepared for my BFA exhibit and making things happen for the Studio with nonprofit incorporation and all that it entails. I look back and wonder how I survived!” she said.
In her artists statement she says:
“My work can vary depending on what medium I use, however, one thing that is consistent is my viewpoint of a subject or object. My work is emotionally charged, whether it is a painting, a sculpture or photograph. With my work in painting, there is a feeling or emotional response to something that becomes an abstraction of colors and marks. In my sculptures I look also for the subject matter that evokes deep emotionally-charged responses in myself, often using found objects, self- created objects and text that give the viewer a glimpse into the charged subject matter.”
Blackwell earned a BFA in sculpture with an Arts Management Minor and graduated summa cum laude from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Her art has been exhibited in dozens of galleries across the state. She has won many awards for her artwork, and has presented workshops, served as an Artist in Residence, and taught ceramics and bookmaking for the Young Scholars Art Program.
More of her work can be found at: www.blackwelldeb.com.
Studio 84
121 W. Center St. Whitewater Open Hours Tuesday / Thursday 10:00AM - 5:00PM Wednesday / Friday 10:00AM - 2:00PM Closed Saturday, Sunday, Monday
NOTE: If coming from a distance please check to make sure we are open in case of weather, holidays or illness that may cause us to close.
Well-known as the Founder and Director of Studio 84, Inc., Blackwell saw a need for a nonprofit community art studio and gallery located in Whitewater that would nurture the creative talents of all people. Born in 2009, Studio 84 specializes in the creative and vocational development of people with disabilities including those with Autism, Down Syndrome, physical disabilities, cognition delays and mental illness. Deborah and her board of directors believe in creating an environment of inclusion and are open to all ages and all abilities.
Located on 121 W. Center Street in Whitewater, Studio 84 welcomes donations of time, talent and treasure. More information can be found at www.studio84inc.org.