Welcome to the Studio of Deanna Schweitzer

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Deanna is primarily a self taught artist. Art classes in high school and college were a space to explore potential. Observation of art has been her main learning support. Her recognition of systems, placement, and application that form designs is the center of her vision in art. Placed lines that move the eye to see presence and likeness fascinate Deanna. She can see many lines before drawing them. She is a firm believer that sewing and music practices have also contributed to the forming of that foresight. 

Art is Deanna’s truest space of belonging. Art is her internal language and deepest sense of home. Being lost in doodles reflect the things observed that fill her senses or touch her emotions. Every day Deanna connects in the observation of motion created by texture, tones, placement, shadow, and light. Visual art is the placement of items to form a space, create a reflection, or tell a story. Just as the placement of sound creates music, visual art is just as powerful, if not more so personally for her. 

The art styles that influence Deanna the most are folk art, isometric art, brut art, mosaics, paper collage, zentangle, graphic art, woodcut, linocut, and international influences. The subjects she is most drawn to create are botanicals, creatures of the earth, and landscapes. The telling of a story within children's book illustrations, cartooning, caricatures, and wall art are the means in which to express this creativity. She also has a deep love for surface pattern design as to how it shapes interior spaces. The mediums that Deanna works with are mixed media using inks, alcohol marker, collage, and watercolor.  

In childhood Deanna began her deep connection to art while living internationally as a third culture kid. Deanna won drawing contests in grade school and secondary schooling in the US. She was always doodling in her class notes. In 4-H  she had a pencil portrait go all the way to the Iowa State Fair. Deanna has done numerous commissioned portraits in pencil and ink caricatures. She has worked as an illustrator on the development of a cartoon strip called The Sunset Beachers. This was submitted to the syndicates. She and her writing partner received some very nice rejection letters. Although the strip was never published it was an amazing learning experience and challenge. Deanna was accepted as a tattoo apprentice that she ultimately declined due to other focuses. The love of tattoos however has been ongoing. She has drawn sharpie tattoos at numerous fundraisers and regularly on friends and family. Every job she has had usually finds her art being used in some way and recognized for it.

The most recent project has been a mural in Deanna”s children’s elementary school in Iowa City, Ia. A wall space of 3ft x 46ft of a root vegetable garden. Deanna’s present focus is to develop a path as a full time working artist. The focus being on murals, children’s books, and individual illustrations. She will continue to participate in Inktober and other development building practices.  Inktober is an annual world wide drawing prompt challenge. 

Another huge influence in her artistic life has been working in the retail side of interior design. Over a ten year period she worked for stores that focused on whole room design. These stores were in Washington, Illinois, Lincoln, Nebraska, and Portland, Oregon. Furniture is a functional form of art. Textiles are from the beginning an artist's vision. Our homes are a reflection of art that we live in. Deanna was successful as a designer as she could work with a broad range of needs, perspective, and aesthetics. Many people have continued to seek Deanna’s support with their projects. 

Along with visual arts Deanna is also moving back into a supportive role of helping people edit their interior spaces. Form and function are layers within aesthetic styles. Each item creates a presence in relation to other things around it. Placement reflects motion, scale, texture, color, and light directly and peripherally. Organization of spatial use is essential to the harmony that we rest and live within.  Art lived is an embodiment of love.

Welcome to the Studio of the incredibly talented Deanna Schweitzer. Deanna is one of eight original Monarch Studio Café  Resident Artists and a valuable member of the Creative Collective. We're so happy you're here.