Studio Gallery & Store
Deborah Cavenaugh Studio
Private Art Studio
4113-E Oleander Dr.
Wilmington, NC
(Get Directions)
The Final Week. Closing Saturday May 21.
SALE! IN PROGRESS
Wednesday 11-7
Thursday 11-7
Friday 11-7
Saturday May 21st 11-5
(910.367.5211)
[youtube width="520" height="317"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gYvi58vuiU[/youtube]
Monhegan Island Maine
It will come to as surprise to those who know me to read that I love Maine. I went the first time about 1995 and fell in love with the state, the scenery, the culture, the wildlife and, yes, the Mainiacs! It is truly a beautiful and special place.
It will come to as surprise to those who know me to read that I love Maine. I went the first time about 1995 and fell in love with the state, the scenery, the culture, the wildlife and, yes, the Mainiacs! It is truly a beautiful and special place.
In my dream life, I have a little cottage in Maine. I can see it in my mind. It is close enough to the water to hear the ocean chime in on the rocks and pebbles and to smell the wild roses that grow amongst the boulders lining the beach. My little dream house is tiny and painted white. It has a little front porch where I take my morning coffee. The furnishings are spare and simple and old. There is no air conditioner and all the windows are always open. I sweep the bare floors clean every morning and wash all the dishes by hand. I hang the tea towels on a line to dry. In the side yard is my kitchen garden—tomatoes, cukes, squash, herbs and cutting flowers. Out back, I have an old shed art studio with a wide, swinging door, one window with window box and a worn, paint splotched plank floor. In my dream life, I drive up from North Carolina to my little Maine house just in time to get the garden in and return home when the first frost hits. I take my cats. I take my paints. My friends and family flow through the house all the summer long. What a good dream! I’m believing it will happen. (And, if you look through my paintings, you will see I have painted and painted again some version of this vision!)
Maine is place of islands, and the islands are full of little dream houses. There are so many islands. I think I read somewhere that Maine has more coastline than any other state. May or may not be true, but I am sure it is almost true! I love the Maine islands.
One of my favorites is Monhegan Island. Monhegan sits about 13 miles out to sea. It is just a little over a mile long and has over ten miles of trails. You walk on Monhegan. There are no cars except to porter luggage up the steep gravelly paths to wherever folks are staying. Very cool. It is an unforgettable place of amazing natural beauty with high cliffs and long ocean views.
Monhegan attracts artists, birdwatchers, hikers and seekers of all types. It is a mecca of vistas and gathered at each one is an array of artists from all over and of all levels and meduims. On Monhegan, you get up in the morning and paint until supper—not a bad gig if you can get it. And, there are many famous American painters who have and do make pilgrimages each summer to Monhegan for the inspiration and comradary and sheer joy of having nothing else to do but paint.
When you arrive by ferry, you are greeted by a list of the island rules, good ones, like recycle, take your trash with you, and no smoking on the island. Sitting right down by the docks is The Barnacle...a bit of deli, a bit of an ice cream parlor, and a bit of a gift shop all with a million dollar view.
The Island Inn sits atop the first rise. It is the classic New England wooden seaside inn and the historic, majestic grand dame of the island. Very beautiful and everything you hope it will be. There is a wide porch where folks gather with their wine to watch the most incredible sunsets.
I once stayed in the house just across from the Inn. It was owned by Miss Rita, one of the oldest residents of the island at the time, maybe The Oldest. I think she was 91 the summer I stayed there. I thought about her a lot and what it must have been like to be raised in such a place and to live your life surrounded by such beauty. She rarely left the island in her life.
Not many people live year round on the island. It takes a special hardiness. Winters are long and freezing and the ferry comes only a couple of times each week.
It also takes a certain hardiness to enjoy the summers there. There is very little electricity on the island, but I find that delightful and charming and romantic. But, it is also not unusual for the island’s water supply to run dry for a couple of days. Somehow you get by, but that one can be tough.
Despite any hardships and because of them, Monhegan is an incredible experience. Everybody stays out doors all day. You eat whatever there is--no pickiness! Every house has a clothesline. Gardens are common, both flower and vegetable. Folks row right out into the ocean in wooden boats. There are puffins and seals and, if you are lucky, you sight a whale. There is an ancient forest aptly called Cathedral. There are rock cliffs of a dizzying height and water so cold and blue it takes the breath right out of you. You never forget Monhegan.
I think the quintessential Monhegan lodging is had at the Trailing Yew, long a gathering spot and inn for artists of all types. There is communal breakfast and supper around long tables and plenty of places to lounge and share histories and stories. The Mooring Chain, a cottage up the path and belonging to the Yew, is where I love to stay.
There is a beautiful wooden church on the island. Monhegan Chapel is a blessing and such a special experience. Lit by gaslight, there is usually some kind of singing event every Sunday evening. Sunday morning there is a non-denominational service lead by a different guest minister-priest-rabbi each week. How marvelous to be on a tiny rock way out in the ocean and lift your prayers and voice to God.
Atop the highest point on the island sits the Monhegan Lighthouse. It is worth the climb just for the view--awe inspiring. And the lighthouse still has it out buildings preserved and in tact, as well as a lovely art gallery. Once you get up there, you will long to stay the day so bring up lunch from one of the little stores on the dirt road known as Main Street.
Your cell phone probably won’t work. You will probably be glad of it! There are a couple of pay phones, but the island way is to post a note on the little shack on Main Street. You can send a message, list a item found or lost, or announce a happening. Everybody stops and reads it.
When I am on Monhegan, everything seems easy and simple. No problem I left back home is able to reach me. I just love it there. I wrote a poem about the experience of painting on Monhegan. It was published in the Poet’s Corner of the Monhegan website. I’ll leave you with it.
Falling down into a dream of Monhegan
The woman is painting her door red. A boy tells a dog his name. Me, I go dragging my paints Down gravely paths Seeking to record memories That I have not yet made.
The whale sings songs full of longing. A world begs forget the gold sun. Me, I go dancing my feet Through sunlit Cathedral Seeking the softly green radiance That I have not yet forgotten.
The man rows a boat old and wooden. A feather rides blue speckled foam. Me, I eye with hands shading Across grey pebbled beaches Seeking to call up an image That I have not yet set down.
The island sways in blue rhythm. The red heart beats back in time. The island sways in blue rhythm. The ocean sighs in white rime
I am dreaming of the island. I am calling out a name. “Monhegan,“ I hear me whisper.
I am dancing cross the ocean. My heartbeat this sweet refrain. “Monhegan,“ I hear me say.
The brush drags a shape on the paper. A paint drop forms life on the page. Me, I pass through like others Returning again and a day Seeking to transcribe beauty In colors I have yet to create.
- Deborah Cavenaugh
Family Portraits
Painting the portrait of a family is such a rewarding part of my work.
I create the portraits from photographs. All I really need is one photo of each person and about 20 minutes of your time for an interview.
I’ve painted families just about anywhere you can imagine the family gathering--sitting around the living room, on a boat, in the yard, piled up in bed listening to a story, at the beach, gathered around the kitchen table—you name it, and I have probably painted it.
A really fun part of these portraits is discovering what is important to the family and to each individual. I use this information to set my portraits apart from more straightforward renderings finding ways to subtly tell the family story using mementos and symbols I tuck away in the painting.
For instance, if the couple went to Paris on their honeymoon, I can hang a little Eiffel Tower chime somewhere. Or, if they fell in love at Dunkin Donuts, I can add just enough of the logo to a small glass filled with flowers to memorialize that memory. If dad likes to garden, I can stick a trowel in his pocket. If mom loves tea, I can paint a teapot birdhouse. You get the idea. It’s really a lot of fun for me and for the family, too, as they discover and relate to others their story told in paint.
Now lots of folks worry about what type of information they need to think up (especially the husbands!). But, no worries! I have a pretty good interview process that gets me the information I need to make your family portrait personal. I want your ideas and input, for sure, but you don’t need to worry if you are not quite sure what to use. Together, we will figure it out.
A really interesting thing has evolved in regard to family portraits. Those of you familiar with my regular fine art know that I don’t put faces on my people. It is the same with the family portraits. No one ever wants the faces because then it doesn’t look like a work of mine. Once or twice I have been asked and have accommodated it, but ultimately this disappoints because friends and neighbors think it doesn’t look like a “Deborah Cavenaugh”.
So, how do you have a portrait without a face? I think of them as emotional portraits. I really understand how to show the relationship between the family members and portray each person with special tenderness. In fact, I spend so much time thinking about the family when I am working on their portrait, that I do come to feel like I know them.
When I paint a family portrait, I am endeavoring to create a blessing for the family by memorializing a happy moment in a happy place at a certain and definite happy time in the life of the family. I am weaving in the elements that tell about the family…just how it is on this good day. Once I am done, I write a blessing on the painting, something that anchors and states what is good about belonging to each other. Sometimes it happens that the family has their own blessing, something they say to each other, a favorite scripture, or the like, which serves or can be used for inspiration.
When all is complete, my goal it to have created a portrait that will, even on a tough, hard day, remind everyone how great it is to belong to each other and how deeply their love goes. It is a great part of my job to be entrusted with such a duty, a privilege and a blessing for which I am thankful.
Looking Closer Episode 13
[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/2116919[/vimeo]
"I'm setting the course by the truth in my heart and knowing that all will be well"
Deborah discusses her artistic journey to this work, the inspiration behind the painting, the new themes that emerged from its' creation and what she means by "setting the course in your life by the truth in your heart."
watch HD version view the original painting subscribe to itunes podcast (free)
House Portrait Pricing
10×14 image $600. 14×20 image $1000. 18×24 image $1400. 22×29 image $1800.
Larger images contact for quote.
Prints of the portrait can be made for gifts.
Painted on Arches 100% cotton museum-grade paper with only the finest quality and most lightfast archival-grade watercolors. Please note, the quoted prices do not include family members or pets in the portrait, but if this is what you want it isn’t a problem. Contact Deborah for a quote.
Artist Statement
I am a self-taught artist. I began painting after my children gave me a box of watercolors purchased in a toy store for Mother’s Day in l992—the same year I became divorced after an 18-year marriage. I have been painting full-time since March of 1994.
I paint what I love, what I want to love or appreciate--what I want to really “see” and what I want to come to understand. I seek in my paintings to find a greater uplifting truth and beauty than I can usually find in my daily life. I want to be reminded and to remind—life is very good, joy is in the small moments, beauty is found in the imperfection at hand.
The common thread of my paintings is an exploration of daily life. The images and symbols I use are common to all our lives and represent, for me, both the home we live in and the one we carry inside. This subject also allows me a way to exercise and explore my traditional female energy in a non-traditional world, to heal from a difficult past, and to consider at a deeper level the challenges of life and that idea we call home.
My paintings have helped me to heal from a childhood marked by abuse and the deaths of my brothers. Through my art, I create and explore what is right in the world. It helps me to remember that while there is oft times terrible tragedy, there is always, existing simultaneously, a wonderful good. In encouraging myself, I hope I am encouraging others.
While I work in many mediums (watercolor, pencil, ink, collage, ceramic and wire), I am best known for my paintings and collages. I have developed my own watercolor technique and painting style. Indeed, there are now young artists independently working in my painting style as well as coming for instruction. My collages are, again, a new way of working with recycled magazine pages. I call them torn paper mosaics. They are an exhausting process requiring a trust in your own art and a willingness to unfold.
My original works have sold all across the United States and in many foreign countries. Having been represented in galleries from Maine to Florida, I have mounted over 150 shows, completed over 500 commissions and been published both as an artist and a writer. I love my work spending 80 plus hours a week in my studio.
Press Quotes
“Deborah Cavenaugh, seeking a fluid intensity, approaches the ecstatic clarity of Walter Anderson or Minnie Evans. [Her] nearly primitive directness resonate[s] with sincerity and honesty.”
John A. Hancock, Contemporary Watercolors, Annie Boykin Gallery
“Cavenaugh... paints in colors that recall an Eastern European city or a Turkish Kilm or perhaps Matisse after a visit to a textile factory.”
Catherine Quillman, Philadelphia Inquirer
“The color is so vivid. The brightness in each and every one of these [works] communicates a kind of joy that one doesn't normally see in paint.”
The Diane Rehms’ Show, NPR, Washington DC
“Colorful, spirited paintings... she paints things I like in a very unique way.”
George White, Cincinnati Inquirer
“Among seven of the best-known expression artists in the country.”
Gibson Greetings, Inc., Artist's Corner, (Gibson is the nation's 3rd largest producer of greeting cards.)
“Cavenaugh paints what she knows best – home…Fans of Cavenaugh’s work connect with the stories she paints.”
Paco Strickland, Focus on the Coast
“Her (Cavenaugh) scenes invite the viewer into her world where they can recognize their own.”
Blonnie Wyche, Encore Magazine
“She (Cavenaugh) is known for her portrayal of comfortable scenes and familiar images with which everyone can identify…. Whether it’s families in their homes, on the beach, or in the park, Cavenaugh’s watercolors are vivid and imaginative.”
Cary Magazine
“She writes on all her paintings, whether it is a sentence or a fragment of a sentence. ‘They (the sayings) are always positive in nature,’ said Deborah. “They are a verification or a validation of what I believe or what I want to remember that is good.”
Kristina Florea, Lumina News
“Cavenaugh's works are of lived-in rooms and happy homes.”
Roberta Penn, Lumina News
“Deborah's work sells not only for the beautiful way she paints, but just as often for the message of inspiration she writes on every painting.”
Mel Jackson, Airlie Moon
“Deborah Cavenaugh brings a fresh and relaxing style of impressionist painting... using familiar memories to connect the viewer to her paintings.”
Roberto Salazar, Up&Coming
“As playful as they are powerful, the Madonnas embrace motifs of women's ordinary work, issues of choice, and the amusing notion of having one's furniture arranged on the beach.”
Bill DiNome, NPR, Wilmington, NC
“Apparently, she's struck upon a visual language that, to her, is saying something for people that they can't say for themselves.”
Richard Sceiford, Spectator Magazine
“Her work is extremely colorful and ornate, evoking a sense of warmth, security and pleasure of a home.”
Carolina Style Magazine
Resume
Cavenaugh has had over 75 shows. Galleries from Maine to Florida have hosted her work. Her original art hangs in private collections across the country and in many foreign countries.
Deborah Cavenaugh Artist Resume Artist, Designer, Illustrator, Writer, Keynote Speaker, Teacher
Websites DeborahCavenaugh.com DCArtLessons.com GoToCards.com Podcast/Vidcast Looking Closer Greeting Card Distribution Soul Traders UK – United Kingdom, Europe, New Zealand, Australia, Singapore International Print Distribution EAW Group, Los Angeles and Tokyo
Current Gallery/Retail Representation Mitzy Jonkheer Gallery, Wilmington, NC Turtle Conservatory, Bald Head Island, NC Lantana Gallery, Southport, NC The Pink Gallery, Hilton Head, NC Handscapes Gallery, Beaufort, NC Sunset River Gallery, Calabash, NC Island Ragpicker, Ocracoke, NC Carolina Creations, New Bern, NC Thrill of the Hunt, Wilmington, NC Airlie Moon, Wilmington NC Fisherman’s Wife, Wilmington NC Occasions, Wilmington NC Dragonflies, Wilmington NC
Publications and Media –selected WHQR, an NPR station, interview, Feb 2011 Wilmington Star News, Feature, May 2011 Wilmington Star News, Sunday Feature, January 2011 Wilmington Star News, Feature and Multiple One Page Promotions, October and November 2010 Focus on the Coast Magazine, July 2010 Wilmington Star News, Feature, July 2010 Wilmington Magazine, Feature, May 2010 Today’s Woman Magazine, Feature, May 2010 Wilmington Star News, Feature, Nov. 2009 Wilmington Magazine, Feature, October 2009 Wilmington Business Journal, Feature, July 2009 Encore Magazine, Feature, July 2009 Encore Magazine, feature, October 22, 2008 Encore Magazine, Feature, October 1, 2008 The Bald Head Island Magazine, cover art, January 2008 Sasee Magazine, Cover, March 2008 Encore, Feature, September 2008, Wilmington Star News, article with art, July 2007, August 2007 Pelican Post Magazine, cover, May 2007, May 2003 Lumina News, Article with art, May 2007 The Bald Head Island Magazine, art, January 2007 Wilma Magazine, Article, October 2006 Sasee Magazine, Cover Art, September 2006 Focus on the Coast, Article, May 2006 Sit Right Here By Me, Cover and illustration, 2005 Cary Magazine, Feature July 2005 Christian Focus, Art and article, 4/04, 6/04, 9/04, 11/04, 2/05 The Tourist Magazine, Maine, cover art 8/04 Brunswick Beacon, art and article 9/04, 11/04 Pink Magazine, Cover art 6/04 Lumina News, June and July 2003 Wilmington Star News, June and July 2003 Printwear May 2002, cover and article Azalea Festival 2000, and 2001 North Carolina State Festival, Official Artist Art In America, Annual Guide,2000, 1999, 1998 Up&Coming, January 2002, review The Philadelphia Inquirer, February 2000, review The Cincinnati Enquirer, Article, May 2000 Home Magazine, September l999 Cover, Styles by Maggie Sweet, Banks Channel Books Encore Magazine 5/00 cover/article, 11/98 cover/article, 5/97 cover/article Cover art, Health and Beauty Magazine, October l997 WECT TV News Interviews 4/00, 4/99,4/98. 5/96 NPR, Diane Rehm, syndicated national show, Washington, DC, live 11/1/96 The Spectator, interview 5/96 WHQR All things considered, 7/95 Taste Full Magazine, Cover, Spring 1995, Summer 1995
Selected Shows The Hill Center, Washington, DC, Fall 2012 UPCOMING Brooklyn Center for the Arts, Juried Group, Feb 2012 Lantana Gallery, One Woman, July-Aug, 2010 Lovey’s, One Woman, Aug-Sept, 2010 Caffe Phoenix, May 2009 Bottega Gallery, Oct – Nov. 2008 Silver Coast Winery, September 2008-Jan 2009 Riverboat Landing, Wilmington, NC April-Dec, 2008 Island Passage, Bald Head Island, NC April – Nov, 2008 Fast Frame and Local Artist’s Gallery, Wilmington NC, March 2008 Café Phoenix, Wilmington NC, November 2007 Fast Frame and Local Artist’s Gallery, Wilmington NC, August 2007 The Art Institute of Washington (DC), group, March 2007 Slotin Folk Artfest, Atlanta Georgia, August 2006 T.A. G. at Lumina, The Layers, July 2006 Merrill Jennings Gallery, Outside Artists Show, May 2006 DeBottis Gallery, West Chester, PA, solo, October 2005 Budding Artist Gallery, Morehead, NC, solo, July 2005 Merrill Jennings Gallery, Davidson, NC solo April 2005 New Elements, Wilmington NC, solo June/July 2004 Chase Gallery, Wilmington NC, solo, June/July 2003 Realis Gallery, Winston-Salem NC, Art Fest Show, featured, September 2003 Mast Cove Gallery, Kennebunkport ME, featured, summer 2003 City Club, solo, January-April 2003 Realis Gallery, Winston-Salem, NC, Sept. thru Oct 2002, solo, Oct.2003 solo Caffe Phoenix, Wilmington NC, April 2002, solo Atlanta, Georgia, Spotlight on Southern Artists, Feb 2002 Fayetteville Museum of Art, Jan.2002, solo DeBottis Gallery, West Chester, PA, September 2001, solo University of North Carolina, No Boundaries, Group, January 2001 WHQR Public Radio Gallery, No Boundaries, Group, January 2001 Watermarks, December 2000, Group Bald Head Island, November 2000, Group DeBottis Gallery, West Chester, PA, Solo 10/03 9/01, 2/00, 2/98, 9/98 St. Johns Museum, Wilmington NC, “Artists of North Carolina” May-99,98 Agora Gallery, SOHO, New York, City, “Interiors-Exteriors” May-June 1998 NOFO Gallery, Wilmington, NC, July-August l998 solo Women in the Arts, Chapel Hill, NC “Through a Woman’s Eyes”, Group, 6/98 Merrill-Jennings Gallery, Davidson, NC solo, 5/ l998 North Carolina Azalea Festival, Juried Master’s Show,4/00, 4/98, 4/97 St John’s Museum, Wilmington, NC, Group, 12/97-1/98 Sunset Gallery, West Chester, PA, Solo, September, l997 Café Phoenix, Wilmington, NC, Solo, 9/97, 7/96, 11/95, 1/94 “Watermarks” Contemporary Media Invitational, Anne Boykin Gallery, 5/97 Bauhaus Gallery, Wilmington, NC, Solo, 12/96-2/97 University of North Carolina, “Restoration of the heartgarden”, solo 3-6, l996 WHQR-National Public Radio, Public Gallery, Wilmington, NC., solo, Sept-Oct 1995
Selected Design Work/of Special Note Member Washington Project for the Arts, Washington DC Member Arlington Art Association, Arlington, VA Twelve Paintings, “The Campaign,” Will Ferrell and Zack Galifinakis Star Brrrberry Yogurt, 5 Commissions Peapod Kids, 25 designs (Children’s clothing) Board of Directors, Domestic Violence Shelter Board of Directors, No Boundaries International Art Colony Board of Directors, North Carolina Arts for Health Dawson Creek (TV), Customized furniture and commissioned art 2 Designs, The Star News, Wilmington NC 1 Design, The Wayfarer, Bald Head Island, NC (Christmas Ornament) I Commission The Widow’s Mite Experience 1 Commission, Wilmington Children’s Museum 4 Commissions, Azalea Festival, largest festival in SE USA (poster, cups, wine glasses, apparel) 1 Design, The North Carolina Oyster Festival (poster, cups, apparel) 1 Commission, The Fur Ball, NC, 1 Commission, Carousel Center, NC 1 Commission, The Heart Ball, NC No Boundaries International Art Colony 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999- Bd. of Dir. 01-03 23 Designs, Gibson Card Company, OH (greeting cards) 31 Designs, Heide’s Homemade Buttermints, (packaging, labels, advertising) 8 Designs, Ashleigh Frames (photo frames)25 Designs, Image Network (apparel) 4 Commissions, The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, CA (travel mugs) 4 Commissions, Mosaic Accents, Korea (flower pots) Private Commissions numbering over 1000 Wilmington Star News, a NY Times paper, two paintings, commemorative cup series Founder WAWAS, Wrightsville Avenue Working Artists’ Studios Art Association Founder/Director Deborah Cavenaugh Summer and Afterschool Art Program Board of Directors, Domestic Violence Shelter Board of Directors, No Boundaries International Art Colony Board of Directors, North Carolina Arts for Health
Americana on Canvas
October 22, 2008 - Encore Magazine - Lauren Hodges
Article about Deborah Cavenaugh's new joint show with Gail Sue.
"Most of Cavenaugh's heartwarming collection, meant to draw from the "inside," seem like stories from a children's book: buying fruits and veggies from a farmer's stand, flying a kit, and frolicking on the beach"