FINE ART > Multimedia
PaperWorks: Deb Murphy
Deb Murphy is a Prince Edward Island resident and artist who creates textural works on canvas using torn and layered papers, acrylic paint, local sea glass, shells, and transparent medium. She grew up in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. While attending elementary school she studied art at The Montreal Museum of Fine Art under the direction of Arthur Lismer, Group of Seven. After high school Deb earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts (1972) under the guidance of painter Guido Molinari at Sir George Williams University (now Concordia University) in Montreal.
In 1974 Deb moved to the United States and launched a custom artworks and framing studio in San Mateo, California. For twenty years she created acrylic paintings on canvas and textile art for residential and commercial installations, winning a number of local, state, and national awards. In 1994 Deb was recruited to be design director for Plaid Enterprises in Atlanta, Georgia. As design director she led a team of artists to conceive and develop artwork which was adapted to arts and crafts products and sold globally, including in Canada. In 2007 Deb returned to school, earning a Masters in Public Anthropology (2009) and PhD in Linguistic Anthropology (2013) at American University in Washington, DC. She conducted research at a military medical facility, studying the unexpected and often under-recognized consequences for women and men of becoming disabled while serving in the armed forces.
In 2016 Deb returned home to Canada to enjoy the bounties of Prince Edward Island life, and to (semi) retire. Her next door neighbor in Oyster Bed Bridge is Canadian artist and PEI resident Adam Sultan, who encouraged Deb to recommit time to producing artwork (he continues to mentor her). He reacquainted her with Donald Andrus, also a Canadian artist and PEI resident, with whom she had studied at Sir George Williams University (now Concordia). Don also encouraged Deb to produce a new portfolio. With their encouragement she resumed her artwork.
Having lost some manual dexterity due to osteoarthritis, Deb has turned from painting to combining mixed media on canvas using large brushes, sponges, sandpaper, knives, and cloth. She works year-round in her off-the-grid studio, using renewable energy for light, heat, and ventilation.
From May through September Deb’s work can be found on PEI at The Craft Council Gallery, and the Dunes Gallery.
Bachelor of Fine Arts 1972
Sir George Williams University (Concordia)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Masters in Public Anthropology 2009
American University
Washington, DC, USA
PhD in Linguistic Anthropology 2013
American University
Washington, DC, USA
ARTIST STATEMENT
Wind, water, wildlife: These are my Prince Edward Island inspirations.
Each day the waterfront in Oyster Bed Bridge brings me unique and compelling sensory experiences and I express my gratitude for them using torn and manipulated handmade Thai papers on canvas. I layer and move the papers, adding and removing acrylic paints, crayon wax, coloured pencil pigments, sea glass, metal foil, string, and shells to reflect my appreciation for all that surrounds me, including things that may be unseen, unrecognized, unremarked. To convey and share my daily experience of wind, water, and wildlife I scrub, scrape, blow, wet, cover, and reveal elements. After periodically and arbitrarily leaving work to dry for days, I discover surprising emergent color and textural effects which inspire additional treatments.
Many of my pieces feature original Haiku that express my daily experiences and observations.
As an anthropologist I conducted research among members of the armed forces who had become disabled. Most of these extraordinary people and those who supported them found unique ways to renew and re-express themselves after unexpected and often devastating setbacks. When they were unable to move forward, it was largely because they lacked equitable support and access to resources. Their astonishing endurance and renewal motivate me to be grateful every day for the abundant resources that surround me on PEI, to move forward through my own minor challenges, and to reach out to my Island community through my art.
Each of my pieces is signed and ready to hang, and has been sealed to protect from dirt, dust, moisture, and UV light.
