Artistic focus:

A project in mapping African diasporic movement and a genealogical investigation in equal measure, my practice revolves around the research and creation of conceptually based autobiographical works that draws upon research into Canadian and American history, American slavery, Migration & Diaspora studies, Trauma theory and corollary discussions of memory and testimony, Southern Gothic Literature, and contemporary debates about political/personal art production. My works are informed by theories related to the aestheticization of the "unspeakable," as they relate to my efforts to work through familial and community silences as a means to reconstitute the self/collective.

Bio:

Deanna Bowen is a Toronto based interdisciplinary artist and Lecturer at the University of Toronto, Scarborough. She received her Masters degree in Visual Art at the University of Toronto in 2008 and her Diploma of Fine Arts from Emily Carr College of Art and Design in 1992. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally in numerous film festivals and galleries. She has received several grants in support of her artistic practice, most notably from the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, Toronto Arts Council, Toronto Lesbian and Gay Community Appeal, Telefilm Canada, and British Columbia Cultural Services. In addition to artistic production, Deanna has also worked in the cultural sector for over 18 years at organizations such as the Images Festival of Film, Video and New Media, InterAccess Electronic Media Arts Centre, the Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto, Point of View Magazine, Women in Focus Arts & Media Centre, and the Inside Out Lesbian & Gay Film and Video Festival. These combined pursuits have informed her work on many film/video/new media juries with funders, festivals, and community groups.

CV:

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