Meet Deanna Mance
Deanna Mance’s work deals with aspects of life that are often heavy and difficult–death, rebirth, family, and the spiritual. At the onset, it’s difficult to imagine these human experiences as “playful,” but Deanna has a way of making these hard concepts feel easier to engage with through her art. When we recently commissioned her for a consulting project, she embraced this balance by using squirtguns filled with paint to create a mural. By utilizing toys and a fun process, Deanna’s mural demonstrates how play is a balm for the heart against the hardships that we all inevitably have to face in one way or another. Get to know Deanna and how play factors into her studio practice.
1. What is your artistic process like?
Over the past five months, I’ve been embarking on a new phase of my artistic practice by prioritizing playful experimentation, quiet observation, and meditative guidance over productivity and/or completing specific projects. Lately I’ve been feeling an intuitive pull to establish a new routine in my daily life and explore new developments within my artistic practice. To foster this sense of newness, I’m implementing simple changes in how I approach activities. This includes slowing down and dedicating time in my studio for moments of reflection and trying new processes and materials that challenge my creative control. While this transition is exciting, navigating this liminal space of creativity where the direction of my work is uncertain is also uncomfortable. Nevertheless, I’m learning to embrace this discomfort as an integral part of shaping a new direction in my artistic practice. Typically, my studio sessions begin with ten minutes of silent contemplation to release any rigid tendencies in my process. I then engage in experimental drawing exercises before accomplishing tasks within my ongoing projects. Throughout my studio time, I make sure to maintain slow and intentional movements by taking meditative breaks to listen attentively to any emerging ideas or thoughts.
2. Where do you draw inspiration for your projects?
The bulk of my creative inspiration stems from spontaneous mark-making, which is also referred to as automatic drawing, as well as from imaginary images that emerge through dreams or moments of silence. Motherhood has significantly influenced my artistic practice; I draw inspiration from my child and our shared experiences. \Additionally, elements of my environment and the everyday observations naturally find their way into my work. Much of this process occurs subconsciously, and I frequently don’t grasp the meaning of my creations until they are completed. It can sometimes take months for me to decipher them fully. Themes of death, rebirth, motherhood, relationships to spirituality and ritual frequently manifest in my artwork. Recently, I’ve been exploring the concept of fluidity and experimenting with water as a medium. This interest was sparked by a past project where I was tasked with creating an abstract expressionist mural using drip techniques and splattered paint. This endeavor provided me the opportunity for playful experimentation with materials I’m less familiar with, such as spray paint, wet rags, loaded paint brushes and water guns. Lots of fun! While I don’t intend to employ those exact materials for future projects, they ultimately guided me towards a new artistic process that I’m currently exploring.
3. What is the purpose of the work you make?
I’m passionate about creating beautiful and spiritual objects, aiming to elevate the ordinary into something extraordinary. Through my art I strive to transcend and illuminate everyday life, to evoke a sense of spirit and to encourage a more vibrant and soulful experience with the finite time we have.
4. What is the most meaningful work you feel you’ve created so far?
In 2016, I experienced the grief of losing my father-in-law, Peter Oresick. A few months after his passing, I found a box of unopened colored pencils from 1999 that my grandmother had given me in preparation for art school—a plan that never came to fruition. She eventually passed away in 2006. Finding the pencils, ten years after her death, stirred up unresolved grief that I felt needed acknowledgment. I decided to dedicate an entire year to processing my grief by drawing on the walls of my home using those colored pencils. I focused on a large wall measuring 14.5’ x 7.5’ and created images and designs spontaneously. The mural incorporated symbolic imagery related to religion, grief, death, rebirth, and spirituality. It took a full year to complete the mural, and once finished, I held an art opening as well as private viewings. During the viewings, visitors were invited to share their personal stories and thoughts on grief. The mural served as a profound way to connect with others and became a catalyst for the evolution of my current work and changed the trajectory of my art practice.
5. What do you have coming up next?
I’m currently exploring the use of water both as a collaborator and a medium in shaping my designs and images, with a particular focus on cosmic and spiritual themes. Though I’m uncertain about the exact influence this experimentation will have on my drawings, sculptures, and paintings, I’m embracing this period of artistic gestation by approaching it one day at a time, allowing the creative process to unfold slowly and organically.
6. How can our audience support you?
You can always reach out for commissions or purchase a print! I’m in the process of making small affordable art pieces that I hope to launch for the summer. Keep eyes and hearts open! <3
Deanna Mance is a self-taught contemporary artist whose work references the transmutation of death and rebirth, introspection of personal and ancestral history, and her relationship to spirituality and ritual. She uses freehand techniques and spontaneous mark making as tools that allow the work to build and grow without restrictions of self awareness or premeditation. Through this approach, she embraces the unpredictable qualities and uncertain outcomes of her work. Born in Cleveland, OH, Mance currently lives and works in Pittsburgh, PA.
For more information about Deanna, please visit her website: Deannamance.com