Deborah

Butterfield
Life without horses? I dont think so!
 *bio
* Born: 1949- San Diego, California

Education
1998 Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana;
Honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts.
1997 Rocky Mountain College, Billings, Montana;
Honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts
1996 Black Belt Wado Ryo Karate, Bozeman, Montana
1973 University of California at Davis, California, M.F.A.
1972 Skowhegan School of Painting and
Sculpture, Skowhegan, Maine.
1970-72 San Diego State College, San Diego California
1969 University of California, San Diego, California
1966 - 68 San Diego State College, San Diego, California
ok, so I know youre
wondering
Whyherself
express Horses?!?!
She wanted to
in She attempts to show
self portraits without the spirit of the horse
using her own human and its essence in her
figure. creations.

"He'd been rolling in the mud," she says, "and there were
no hairs visible on his body." Deborah decided to try to
make a horse out of mud. "I mixed everything I'd ever
worked with--mud, clay, plaster, glue, paper, and brown
paper--then smoothed it [over a framing made of steel]
with straw and hay and grass and twigs," she says. "That
was my first horse."
Horses in a reclined position have extra meaning for the artist.
She sees lying down as an act that only occurs when the
animal is truly comfortable, as opposed to their usual dozing
while standing up.
She was, in a way, living vicariously through the forms of
the horses- and taking a nap in the middle of a gallery.

Although she has been focused on the subject matter of

horses for 30+ years, each piece is unique (other than a few
during the 80s that were reproduced).
 Her current works
combine organic and
abstract forms with
materials like steel,
bronze, and junk
metal.

In 2006, she had her

first traveling show
and exhibited many
works from her
personal collection-
most of which had
rarely or never been
seen by the public.
 Her cast
bronze works
appear to be
made of
branches and
sticks- and
they are, in a
way.

The long
process begins
with sticks.
She uses
ceramics, wax,
plaster, and
bronze to cast
the sticks for
the armature.

After arranging the bronze sticks, she welds them together. Next, she tries
out endless combinations of sticks to complete the horses form. Once it is
completed in this mix of wood and metal, it is documented carefully with
pictures and then disassembled so that each stick can be cast and replaced
to the sculpture.
 She has been commissioned by many prestigious
organizations like:

Whitney Greenwich,
Museum of Connecticut
Israel
American Art Oakland Arts Council
Museum
Museu
m Denver Art
Walker Art Metropolitan Museum
Center Museum of Art
Sculpture Kansas City Zoo
Garden
Urban
Portland, San Francisco
Development
Oregon Museum of
Corporation
International Contemporar
of Boston
Airport y Art
Massachusett
A few of her
works
outdoors
 Barbed wire- in
contrast to her
natural subject
matter
BRONZE!!!!
 and a close
up of some of
the details of
this junk metal
beauty
One of her smaller,
earlier works