Artist Statement
My work embodies a yearning for inspiration through renewed perspective.
Often what motivates my need to paint is an inherent desire for the freedom that discernment can unveil. The compartmentalization of trauma, the repetition of psychological patterns and the deciphering of emotional murkiness often appear abstractly in my work. I came away from a brutally abusive childhood, followed by years of PTSD therapy, with a honed skill for self-observation. I do not invest in the notion that my abusive childhood made me a better artist. I know I could have been an even greater artist if I’d had a loving and supportive family life. So, I don’t paint about my journey through a death-defying childhood. I paint about what it takes to go beyond that. To read more on this Go Here. In addition, I was recently diagnosed as a Gifted Adult (not to be confused with high IQ). Also known as Rain Forest Mind; heightened empathy, innate observational skills, emotional depth, and endless curiosity make up the perspective that informs my work.
Intending to reveal a moment of becoming is how I approach a canvas. My process is gestural, intuitive and emotional. I work primarily in acrylic along with pen, pencil, crayon, spray paint and oil stick. I trust that my mind already knows what is to be shared. Obvious/non-obvious patterns of vivid, almost jarring color juxtaposed with disconcertingly enticing dark aspects merge with randomly placed lines, squiggles, dots and geometries symbolizing the coherence between emotion and inner language. Titles are almost always based on a personal experience. My internal process is a grounded interplay between spontaneity and non-judgmental observation.
Sometimes preternatural vocal outpourings (Soundscapes) are recorded to accompany a painting. In many cultures, suppression of buried emotion is prevalent. Release is often likened to an overwhelming altered state and is shunned. I detour this fear with the use of shamanic-style vocals combined with an intuitive language paralleling the dialogue between emotion and inner language. The goal is freedom so couching the feelings in undefinable utterances circumvents the shame inherent in oppression. My art is not only about what happened to me, how it affected me, and who I am but how that culmination can encourage others.
Often what motivates my need to paint is an inherent desire for the freedom that discernment can unveil. The compartmentalization of trauma, the repetition of psychological patterns and the deciphering of emotional murkiness often appear abstractly in my work. I came away from a brutally abusive childhood, followed by years of PTSD therapy, with a honed skill for self-observation. I do not invest in the notion that my abusive childhood made me a better artist. I know I could have been an even greater artist if I’d had a loving and supportive family life. So, I don’t paint about my journey through a death-defying childhood. I paint about what it takes to go beyond that. To read more on this Go Here. In addition, I was recently diagnosed as a Gifted Adult (not to be confused with high IQ). Also known as Rain Forest Mind; heightened empathy, innate observational skills, emotional depth, and endless curiosity make up the perspective that informs my work.
Intending to reveal a moment of becoming is how I approach a canvas. My process is gestural, intuitive and emotional. I work primarily in acrylic along with pen, pencil, crayon, spray paint and oil stick. I trust that my mind already knows what is to be shared. Obvious/non-obvious patterns of vivid, almost jarring color juxtaposed with disconcertingly enticing dark aspects merge with randomly placed lines, squiggles, dots and geometries symbolizing the coherence between emotion and inner language. Titles are almost always based on a personal experience. My internal process is a grounded interplay between spontaneity and non-judgmental observation.
Sometimes preternatural vocal outpourings (Soundscapes) are recorded to accompany a painting. In many cultures, suppression of buried emotion is prevalent. Release is often likened to an overwhelming altered state and is shunned. I detour this fear with the use of shamanic-style vocals combined with an intuitive language paralleling the dialogue between emotion and inner language. The goal is freedom so couching the feelings in undefinable utterances circumvents the shame inherent in oppression. My art is not only about what happened to me, how it affected me, and who I am but how that culmination can encourage others.
Bio
Debra Lapatina, (b.1954) is a self-taught abstract painter from Albuquerque, NM. It was 2003, after recovery from PTSD, when she met John Hegener, an artist who encouraged her to begin drawing. A few years later, the couple moved to Cincinnati. Debra would participate in various art festivals and was awarded a solo exhibition at Columbus Ohio’s Lindsey Gallery in 2007. Presented with the opportunity to return to New Mexico in 2010 the couple settled in Taos. Debra would exhibit with John at The Envision Gallery in 2012. Surrounded by inspiration, Debra continues to create and intently pursue artistic opportunity.
CV
SOLO EXHIBITION
2007 Lindsay Gallery, Columbus, Ohio
TWO PERSON EXHIBITION
2008 with John Hegener, Hayley Gallery, New Albany, Ohio
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2019 Taos Fall Arts
2012 Envision Gallery, Light Codes, Taos, New Mexico
2007 Hayley Gallery, New Albany, Ohio
2007 Art in New Albany, New Albany, Ohio
2006 Le Lien (The Bond), MJC Pichon, Nancy, France
2005 Hyde Park Art Fair, Cincinnati, Ohio
AWARDS
2021 Luxembourg Art Prize, Certificate of Artistic Merit
PRIVATE COLLECTIONS
Sir Martin Sorrell, WPP Group, UK
Hayley Savage, New Albany, OH
David Showe, Columbus, OH
Level Partners, Financial Consultants, Columbus, OH
Ira and Pamela Sharfin, New Albany, OH
Alison Stratman, El Prado, NM
Dana Micucci, Taos, NM
Debra Lapatina, (b.1954) is a self-taught abstract painter from Albuquerque, NM. It was 2003, after recovery from PTSD, when she met John Hegener, an artist who encouraged her to begin drawing. A few years later, the couple moved to Cincinnati. Debra would participate in various art festivals and was awarded a solo exhibition at Columbus Ohio’s Lindsey Gallery in 2007. Presented with the opportunity to return to New Mexico in 2010 the couple settled in Taos. Debra would exhibit with John at The Envision Gallery in 2012. Surrounded by inspiration, Debra continues to create and intently pursue artistic opportunity.
CV
SOLO EXHIBITION
2007 Lindsay Gallery, Columbus, Ohio
TWO PERSON EXHIBITION
2008 with John Hegener, Hayley Gallery, New Albany, Ohio
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2019 Taos Fall Arts
2012 Envision Gallery, Light Codes, Taos, New Mexico
2007 Hayley Gallery, New Albany, Ohio
2007 Art in New Albany, New Albany, Ohio
2006 Le Lien (The Bond), MJC Pichon, Nancy, France
2005 Hyde Park Art Fair, Cincinnati, Ohio
AWARDS
2021 Luxembourg Art Prize, Certificate of Artistic Merit
PRIVATE COLLECTIONS
Sir Martin Sorrell, WPP Group, UK
Hayley Savage, New Albany, OH
David Showe, Columbus, OH
Level Partners, Financial Consultants, Columbus, OH
Ira and Pamela Sharfin, New Albany, OH
Alison Stratman, El Prado, NM
Dana Micucci, Taos, NM