Education | |
1981 | School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and Tufts University, B.F.A. Painting |
2001 | University of New Hampshire, Thompson School of Applied Science, A.A.S. Horticultural Technology |
Awards and Grants | |
2022 | Honorable Mention, One of a Kind, South Shore Art Center, Cohasset, MA Juror: Catherine Kernan |
Honorable Mention, Arts Connect, Catamount Arts, St. Johnsbury, VT Juror: Katherine French |
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2020 | Artist Entrepreneurial Grant from the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts |
2019 | Second Place Award, Press and Release, Chester Gallery, Henniker, NH |
2019 | Juror’s Award, Patterning, Anything But Flat Exhibition, Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill. Juror: Joanne Mattera |
2018 | Second Place Award, Fifth National Monoprint/Monotype Juried Exhibition, Juror: Judith Brodsky |
2011 | Artist Entrepreneurial Grant from the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts |
1996 | Bank of New Hampshire Award, Ann’s Garden, No. 12, 50th Annual Exhibition, The Currier Gallery of Art, Manchester, NH |
Solo Exhibitions | |
2023 | Native Intelligence, Rochester Museum of Fine Arts, Rochester, NH |
2021 | Edges, The Gallery in Readfield, Readfield, ME |
2020 | Syncopated Rhythm, Debra Claffey, AVA Gallery, Lebanon, NH |
2019 | Hidden Lives, Paintings by Debra Claffey, Gateway Gallery, Portsmouth, NH |
2016 | Debra Claffey: Paintings with Drawing , Galletly Gallery, New Hampton, NH |
2012 | Debra Claffey, Hole In The Wall Studioworks, Raymond, ME |
2002 | New Works , Hebrew Rehabilitation Center, Boston, MA |
2001 | New Works , Robert Lincoln Levy Gallery, Portsmouth, NH |
2000 | New Works , Southern Vermont Arts Center Gallery, Manchester VT |
1997 | Contemplating Still Life, Southern Vermont Art Center, Manchester, VT |
1992 | Improvizations , Arts Alive, Baystate Medical Center Galleries, Springfield, MA |
1983 | Images from Another Medium, Paintings and Monotypes . The Loading Dock Gallery, Boston, MA |
Two Person Exhibitions | |
2020 | Debra Claffey and Judith Schneider, Hole in the Wall Studioworks, Raymond, ME |
2010 | Biology, Geometry, Morphology, Debra Claffey and Soosen Dunholter, The Robert Lincoln Levy Gallery, Portsmouth, NH |
Selected Group Exhibitions | |
2024 | Abstract, River Arts, Damariscotta, ME. Juror: Alan Crichton |
In This Moment, 3S Artspace Gallery, Portsmouth, NH. Juror: Emily Leach | |
Drawn to Maine: Contemporary Drawing and Printmaking, Maine Art Gallery, Wiscasset, ME. Juror: Michael Olszewski | |
Making an Impression: The Monotype and Monoprint, Cove St. Arts, Portland, ME. Juror: Elizabeth Jabar | |
Excavations, Pillar Gallery, Concord, NH. Curators: Michael Howat and Fallon Rae | |
2023 | Because It Matters, Grimshaw-Gudewicz Gallery, Bristol Community College, Fall River, MA Curator: Kathleen Hancock |
Capturing Beauty, The Lakes Gallery at Chi-Lin, Laconia, NH. Curator: Suzanne Lee | |
Pulse, Great Bay Community College, Portsmouth, NH | |
Flora and Fauna, Brush Gallery invitational, Lowell, MA. | |
2022 | Elemental: Art as Advocacy, Mattatuck Art Musuem, Waterbury, CT. Curator: Cecilia Feldman. |
86th Regional Exhibition of Art and Craft, Fitchburg Art Museum, Fitchburg, MA. Juror: Jameson Johnson. | |
Foraging, Manhattan Arts Center, Manhattan, KS. Curator: Kelly Yarbrough. | |
Relationships: Hot/Cold/Intricate, Southern Vermont Art Center, Manchester, VT. Curator: Alison Crites. | |
Lucky Charms, Mojos, Signs, Cyphers and Zodiacs…Castle Hill Gallery, Truro Center for the Arts, Truro MA. Juror: Deborah Dancy. | |
Arts Connect, Catamount Arts, St. Johnsbury, VT Juror: Katherine French | |
One of a Kind, South Shore Art Center, Cohasset, MA Juror: Catherine Kernan | |
2021 | Layering: The Art and Experience of Hot Wax, Cotuit Center for the Arts, Cotuit, MA. Juror: Craig Bloodgood |
85th Regional Exhibition, Fitchburg Art Museum, Fitchburg, Mass. | |
Abstraction Now | Selections from the Yellow Chair Salon, online. Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill, Truro, MA Curator: Michael David | |
SEAChange: Meditations in Sustainability, Highfield Hall and Gardens, Falmouth, Mass. | |
Waxing, Now Waning Pandemic: A Juried Encaustic Show, online. Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill, Truro, MA. Juror Kaveh Mojtabai | |
Layering: The Art and Experience of Hot Wax, Cotuit Center for the Arts, Cotuit, Mass | |
2020 | Tree & Twig, Inspired by the Forest, Twigg Gallery Boscawen, NH |
2019 | Crossroads: Four Perspectives, Dolphin Gallery, Worcester State University, Worcester, MA. Curator: Catherine Wilcox-Titus |
A Sense of Place in Contemporary Encaustic, Monmouth University, West Branch, NJ. Juror: Lisa Pressman. Curators: Karen Bright and Kathleen Curtis Cosgrove | |
Schools of Thought, New Art Center, Newton, MA | |
84th Regional Exhibition of Art & Craft, Fitchburg Art Museum, Fitchburg, MA. Juror: Aynel David Guerra | |
2019 Biennial Regional Jurors’ Choice Exhibition, Thorne-Sagendorph Art Gallery, Keene State University, Keene, NH. Jurors: Karina Kelley and Bill Stelling | |
New Hampshire: An Asian Sensibility. Lakes Gallery at Chi-Lin, Laconia, NH Curator: Suzanne Lee | |
Anything But Flat, 13th International Encaustic Conference, Truro, MA. Juror: Joanne Mattera | |
Wax Paper, The Commons, Provincetown, MA. Curator: Kelly Austin-Rolo | |
12th Biennial International Miniature Print Exhibition, The Center for Contemporary Printmaking. Norwalk, CT. Juror: Tomas Vu-Daniel | |
Monotype Guild of New England Members’ Juried Exhibition, Rhode Island Watercolor Society Gallery, Pawtucket, RI. Juror: Megan Foster | |
Impressions, Gallery Twist, Lexington, MA. Curator: Gillian Ross | |
Fusion: Encaustic Works, Higgins Gallery, Cape Cod Community College, Barnstable, MA. Curator: Nathalie Ferrier | |
2018 | Elemental: Contemporary Encaustic , Michele and Donald D'Amour Museum of Fine Arts, Springfield, MA |
Tipping Points, Elemental, Thayer Art Gallery, Thayer Academy, Braintree, MA | |
Fifth National Monotype/Monoprint Juried Exhibition, Art Complex Museum, Duxbury, MA. Juror: Judith Brodsky | |
Organic to Geometric , Provincetown Art Association and Museum, Provincetown, MA. Curator: Carol Pelletier | |
NHIA Members' Exhibition , Sharon Arts Gallery, Peterborough, NH. Juror Theresa Choi. | |
Secret Gardens, Nave Gallery, Somerville, MA. Juror: Tori Costa | |
Text and Textiles, A Touring Exhibition of Poets and Artists , Hancock Public Library, Hancock, NH | |
2017 | Shifts , The Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, MA. Juror: Ben Shattuck |
Down East , Saco Museum, Saco ME. Jurors: Catherine Kernan, Josephine Graf | |
Regional Exhibition 82 , Fitchburg Art Museum, Fitchburg, MA. Juror: Erin Becker | |
Buzz , Gallery Blink, Lexington, MA Curator: Gillian Ross | |
Alternative Wax, Kobalt Gallery, Provincetown, MA | |
Black Tie (Optional) , A Gallery, Provincetown, MA | |
Impressions , Gallery Blink, Lexington, MA | |
Chaos & Order , Hilles Gallery, New Haven, CT. Juror: Jennifer Gross | |
At Large , Great Bay College Art Gallery, Portsmouth NH. Juror: Annette Cohen | |
2016 | Square Foot Art Basel Miami 4 , Projects Gallery, Miami, FL |
A Small Show of Large Works, Great Bay College Art Gallery, Portsmouth, NH. Juror: Annette Cohen | |
Mark of the Brush , Castle Hill Gallery, Truro, MA. Juror: Christine McCarthy | |
Nº 10 Invitational, Adam Peck Gallery, Provincetown, MA | |
Vision and Verse , University of New England Art Gallery, Portland, ME. Juror: Anne Zill | |
Beneath the Surface , Saco Museum, Saco, ME. Juror: Ron Crusan | |
Selections: Winners from the 2015 Library Arts Center Juried Regional Exhibition , Newport, NH | |
Square Foot Art Basel Miami 3, Winwood Gallery, Miami, FL | |
2015 | Chaos and Order: Contemporary Encaustic by New England Wax , River Tree Center for the Arts, Kennebunk, ME. Juror: Anne Zill |
Force of Nature: Exploring the Power of the Feminine , Silver Center for the Arts, Plymouth State University, Plymouth, NH. Juror: Judith Brodsky | |
One + One , A Gallery Art, Provincetown, MA | |
Library Arts Center Juried Regional Exhibition, Newport, NH | |
Mapping: Finding a Way, http://evansencaustics.blogspot.com. Curator: Hylla Evans | |
2014 | Transformations, Sharon Arts, Peterborough, NH. Juror: Kaveh Motjabai |
Breaking Boundaries, Fountain Street Gallery, Framingham, MA. Jurors: Sara Zela and Lauren O’Neal | |
The New England Wax/FUSEDChicago Diptych Project II, The Engine, Biddeford, ME | |
I Believe, Galletly Gallery, New Hampton, NH. Juror: Amy Wilson | |
2013 | Material Matters, Lewis Gallery, Portland, ME |
Red, A Gallery, Provincetown, MA. Juror: Marian Peck | |
Seven, Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill Gallery, Truro, MA. Juror: Shawn Hill | |
Biennial, Rochester Museum of Fine Arts, Rochester, NH. Juror: A.B. Miner | |
Growl , Karl Drerup Gallery, Plymouth, NH. Juror: Saisha M. Grayson | |
Natura Viva: Flora Fauna & Us , ArtCurrent Gallery, Provincetown, MA | |
2012 | National Juried Encaustic Exhibition , Encaustic Art Institute, Cerrillos, NM. Juror: Ellen Koment |
Pattern In Painting, Online exhibition , Curator: Hylla Evans, www.evansencaustics.blogspot.com | |
Looking Closely, Artists in the Arboretum , The Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Plain, MA | |
Confluence: Water and Light, Kobalt Gallery, Provincetown, MA. Juror: Francine D'Olimpio | |
Wax, A Gallery , Provincetown, MA. Juror: Adam Peck | |
2011 | Wax-Inc. National Exhibition, Cohasset, MA. Juror: Brian T. Allen |
NH Institute of Art 2011 Biennial, Manchester NH. Juror: Anthony Apesos | |
New England Collective II, Galatea Fine Art, Boston, MA. Juror: Joanne Mattera | |
Hot Wax, Cold Metal, Art at 12 Gallery, Boston, MA. Juror: Zola Solamente | |
2010 | New England Wax at the Fairfield Arts Council, Fairfield, CT. Curator: Laura Einstein |
Contemporary Women Artists XV, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO. Juror: Yolanda Lopez | |
2009 | The Luminous Landscape Invitational , Montserrat Gallery of Art, Beverly, MA |
Ancient Medium, N.E.W. Terrain, Art Complex Museum, Duxbury, MA. Juror: Craig Bloodgood | |
Heat Stroke , Saco Museum, Saco ME. Juror: Katherine French | |
61st Annual Currier Museum of Art NHAA Juried Exhibition Juror: Trevor Smith | |
2008 | In Flat Fields, River Tree Center for the Arts, Kennebunk, ME. Juror: Shawn Hill |
The Diptych Project: a Collaboration in Wax, Whitney Art Works, Portland ME | |
The Diptych Project: a Collaboration in Wax, Steamboat Springs Arts Council, Steamboat | |
Springs, CO | |
2007 | New England Wax: Encaustic II, The Galletly Gallery, New Hampton, NH |
Biennial Regional Jurors’ Choice , Thorne-Sagendorf Art Gallery, Keene, NH. Jurors: Catherine French, Gerry Bergstein, and Mary Minifie. | |
2003 | 55th Annual Exhibition , Currier Museum of Art, Manchester, NH. Juror: Joanna Soltan |
2000 | Sanctuary , WCA Boston and Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Cambridge, MA |
Here and Now: New Hampshire Women Artists , Saint Anselm College, Manchester, NH | |
Curatorial Projects | |
2017 | The Space Between Shadow and Light , Gallery 10, Truro, MA |
2016 | Balancing Acts, Twiggs Gallery, Boscawen, NH |
2015 | The Incisive Line , Gallery 10, Truro, MA. |
2013 | Natura Viva: Flora, Fauna & Us , ArtCurrent Gallery, Provincetown, MA |
2012 | Natura Viva online exhibition, http://debraclaffey.blogspot.com/2012/11/natura-viva.html |
Commissions | |
Painting, Ann's Garden , James and Ann Lawson, Cambridge, MA | |
Painting, Turner's Turners , The Baltimore Plaza Hotel, Baltimore, MD | |
Monotype illustrations, The Christian Science Monitor , "The Home Forum", Boston, MA | |
Collections | |
Laventhol & Horwath, Boston, MA | |
Selected Bibliography | |
Joanne Mattera, Italianità: Contemporary Art Inspired by the Italian Immigrant Experience, 2023 | |
Brian Goslow, “Encaustic Crissroads”, Artscope, November /December 2019 | |
Marcia Santore, “It’s Only Natural, Debra Claffey Waxes Poetic”, Artscope, May 2016 | |
Linda Chestney, “Transformations, Encaustic Artists Challenge Boundaries”, Artscope, September 2014 | |
“Top Artists Featured in Annual NHAA Exhibit at Currier Museum of Art”, NH Sunday News , January 26, 2003 | |
Laura Pope, “Colorful, Lush Still Lifes Mark Claffey Exhibition”, NH Weekend, The Union Leader , June 2001 | |
Donald Rosenthal, The Currier Gallery of Art, NHAA 50 th Annual Exhibition, Art New England, May 1997 | |
New American Paintings , Open Studios Press, Needham, MA, 1993 | |
Publications as Author/Designer | |
2019 | "Elemental: Contemporary Encaustic", exhibition catalog |
2017 | “The Space Between Shadow and Light”, exhibition catalog |
2016 | “Paintings with Drawing”, exhibition catalog |
“Compelling Progressions”, exhibition catalog | |
“Beneath The Surface”, exhibition catalog | |
2015 | “The Incisive Line”, exhibition catalog |
“Transformations”, exhibition catalog | |
2013 | “Natura Viva: Flora, Fauna, and Us”, exhibition catalog |
Professional Service | |
2014-2018 | Senior Editor, ProWaxJournal |
2013-2015 | President, New England Wax |
2013-2015 | President, Women’s Caucus for Art, New Hampshire Chapter |
2008, 2017 | Board of Directors, Women's Caucus for Art/NH |
2009 | Board of Directors, National Women's Caucus for Art |
Professional Affiliations | |
Monotype Guild of New England | |
New England Wax | |
Women's Caucus for Art, NH Chapter | |
C2C Art Projects |