It is vital that my artwork has merging elements, I strive for abstract color movements interacting with recognizable figures. Emotion, to me, is this way, formed and unformed working together. Before I start painting, I dig deep into what I'm feeling, what I've gone through, how it has changed and shaped me. I look for common ground with my fellow travelers. With every piece, I try to tap into and connect to the human experience. - Deiloh
Denise stumbled across an artistic awakening at UC Davis while taking a life drawing class to ease up her heavy load of courses. Learning how to draw and paint tamed the chaos of college life by providing moments of time for herself. Those first artistic expressions were terrible. She vowed to get better. The journey began.
After marriage, Denise transferred to Foothill College in Mountain View with the idea of pursuing Graphic Design. With great determination, she applied to every print shop listed in the Mountain View yellow pages. Before long, Express Printing and Graphics hired her. Learning to manipulate files for the printing machines, while at the same time taking a full course load and figuring out perspective and color mixing, proved challenging and rewarding. Her favorite course involved printmaking, taught by Kent Manske, and planted the seeds for future exploration.
With the mindset of Graphic Design, a transfer to San Jose State propelled Denise further into art history and media. Adventures with charcoal, oil, graphite, clay and more became a passion. She decided a change in direction from the print shop necessary. A switch to retail, working for University Art in San Jose, gave her access to the art community and exposure to new art materials. It is here that she met Jeff Bramschreiber and started looking at art creation as her calling.
Denise joined and contributed to East Valley Artist's Association, as well has entered venues such as Pacific Arts Fair, San Jose Open Studios, and 2nd Saturdays in Campbell.
When she isn't arting, Denise is an accomplished clarinet player, enjoys amateur photography of nature and the cosmos, loves working with old photographs, and takes a few weeks each winter to crochet blankets for friends and family. She is also a full-time Mom to two energetic and delightful teen boys.
