Today we’d like to introduce you to Deedra Baker.
Deedra, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I grew up in a rural community in southeast Kansas. I was fortunate enough to have arts education throughout K-12 from an energetic and passionate art teacher, Michal Austin. She taught us about all the great masters, including Vincent Van Gogh. We experimented with ceramics, drawing, painting, and altered bookmaking. I became interested in the photographic medium at the age of seven through 4-H, a youth leadership program. Becky Knoll was my photography instructor in 4-H. She was the first to teach me how to create traditional black and white photograms in the darkroom, along with basic camera operations like f-stop, shutter, composition, and framing, as well as conceptual content. I always loved making photographs and was a part of the photography program in 4-H until I was 18 years old. That being said, I have also always had a passion for writing and actually began my undergraduate career studying Mass Media at Washburn University in Topeka, KS with the intention of becoming a journalist. I enjoyed my studies and especially loved the editing course I took my second semester at Washburn. That same semester, however, I took Black and White Photography and fell back in love with the darkroom and the process of making photographs, developing my own film, and making enlargements. I immediately changed my major and began my journey as an artist.
My undergraduate professors were amazing. I studied with Marydorsey Wanless, Marguerite Perret, and Stephanie Lanter, who all had a great impact on my understanding of the arts and the possibilities ahead of me. During a study abroad trip in London with Professor Perret, I gained an understanding of my own interest in obtaining an MFA and pursuing a career in academia—with the goal of becoming a professor. I took a couple of years off between undergraduate and graduate school to develop my portfolio and experience time as an artist and as an individual outside of the classroom. I began my MFA at Texas Woman’s University in 2013, where I had the privilege of studying with Susan Kae Grant. As a graduate student, I was able to explore my practice as an artist conceptually and through experimentation of different photographic processes, as well as bookmaking, papermaking, and printmaking. Professor Grant was a fantastic mentor for professional practices and teaching. I learned so much about how to be a successful artist and teacher and fell in love with educating my students.
Today, I am the Program Director for Art Room a non-profit organization located in the Near Southside, Fort Worth, TX. Founded on the principles of accessibility and diversity, Art Room is dedicated to providing programming that educates, inspires, and supports artistic practice within the adult and youth community. In addition to this role in the non-profit, I am also Associate Faculty [non-tenure track] at Collin College and Adjunct Faculty at Texas Christian University, where I teach studio photography and the history of photography.
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
My creative work explores themes of femininity, gender roles, personal and psychological spaces, and self-identity. For many years, I created photographic self-portraits within my personal/domestic space. I enjoy using photography, video, bookmaking, text, printing processes and works on paper to visually explore my concepts. I have always been interested in family and heredity, so my latest body of work, Ties That Bind, has broadened to investigate the lineage of the feminine and explore the nexus of my family through three generations of females. Through portraits, environmental still lifes, and landscapes, this series examines the interconnectedness between my mother, three sisters, two nieces, and myself. As an extension of the traditional family archive of snapshots, Ties That Bind uses color photographs, video, and a one-of-a-kind artist’s book to explore the relationships between the women by examining family traditions, rituals, and the connection to a homeplace—the central or family home.
While my artwork is often autobiographical and Ties That Bind specifically tells my family story, it is also a universal exploration of familial connections and influences. All of my artwork invites the viewer to bring his/her own experiences to the work and to connect in a personal and familiar manner.
What responsibility, if any, do you think artists have to use their art to help alleviate problems faced by others? Has your art been affected by issues you’ve concerned about?
I think the role of an artist has and will always be a way to visually interpret and reflect what is going on in the world. Artists provide education, insight, and perspective to personal and universal subjects that are impactful in both large and small ways.
My personal work is directly influenced by feminism and the study of women in my family and the world. I often find issues pertaining to female domesticity/personal space and mental health at the core of the concepts that I explore. In fact, I am greatly influenced by literature, such as The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, as well as novels and/or poems by authors like Kate Chopin and Dorothy Parker. These are historical examples, but their core themes still ring true today in regard to equality.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
The absolute best way to support artists is by attending their exhibitions and sharing their work with those around you. The Internet provides amazing access for viewing art but seeing a photograph, painting, or sculpture on the screen is in no way the same as seeing the piece in person. This is one reason I have collaborated with Nathan Madrid and Katie Murray to start Art Room. One of Art Room’s goals as an organization is to provide resources and support to local artists and students by connecting them with a broader artistic community. Art Room is committed to connecting all makers to education, inspiration, and support through the opportunities to make, discuss, and share contemporary art.
I share my work through local, regional, and national exhibitions, as well as through publications. To keep up-to-date with what and where I am exhibiting, please follow me on social media and check out my website (see details below). Two forthcoming accolades include the publication of Ties That Bind in Edge of Humanity Magazine, as well as having worked in the 2019 Adjunct Faculty Exhibition at the East | West Galleries at Texas Woman’s University, which opens January 19, 2019.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.deedrabaker.com
- Email: deedra@deedrabaker.com
- Instagram: @deedra_baker
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/deedra.baker3
- Twitter: @deedra_baker
- Other: www.artroom.space
Image Credit:
Deedra Baker
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