Originally I planned to paint an abstract woven design of colored lines. As I worked, the interlocking lines transformed into the trees, symbolically returning this broken wooden violin back to its place of origin, the forest. All arts share the same creative process and the possibility to transform the artist, viewer, the composer, the musician or the listener. The young woman painted on the back of the violin represents both an artist and a musician. In one hand she holds a violin and in the other she touches a line that is connected to the forest painting on the other side.
Deborah Howard heads the painting program at the University of Denver. Her work has been exhibited at: The Aspen Art Museum, Regis University, Arvada Arts Center, Tweed Museum in Duluth Minnesota, Contemporary Art Center in New Orleans and City College in New York. Her paintings are in private collections through out the Denver area. Deborah received her BFA at the Rhode Island School of Design and her MFA at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.