Diane Marie Kramer

About Diane Marie: First generation American, Born in Detroit, Michigan. After High School Diane relocates to Northern California where she began a long journey studying the Visual Fine Arts. Working towards her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Sacramento, CA she studied with many of the "California Funk Artists". Following her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, she was accepted to study in Sacramento, and received a Master of Art, concentrating on painting and Clay sculpture. During this time she studied with Oliver Lee Jackson, Peter VandenBerge, and was introduced to other well known sculptors and painters work, some of which were, Robert Arneson, Manuel Neri, Joan Brown, Wayne Thiebaud, and Roy De Forest and many more fabulous Makers! Diane was selected to the Master of Fine Arts program in San Francisco and studied with Steven Destabler, a world known sculptor, and earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in Sculpture. She specialized in mixed media sculpture and abstract assemblages using clay, metals, wood and found objects. This time period was a very experimental phase within her own work. After completing her Master of Fine Arts degree she decided to move from the city and relocate in the middle of a cherry and walnut orchard where she lived and worked as an artist. She began to teach many forms of visual art at art centers and special art programs and later on worked full time at a day school that used the arts for Behavioral Modification. She served as the visual artist/instructor on board and worked with people who were cognitively, physically, emotionally, and behaviorally impaired. She also was one of the Co Founders of the 750 Art Gallery in Sacramento, CA. Diane Returns to Michigan in 1997 and has taught at a variety of Art Centers, Colleges, after school programs, artist in residence programs, Privately and served as a teaching artist with VSA arts of Michigan. She has served in many artist in residence programs, both in California and Michigan, the last at the Secunda Museum in Brighton, MI- under the "Arthurs Kids" grant based Art program. Diane’s teaching and her Exhibiting in Galleries and Museums began as an undergraduate student at California State University, Sacramento. Since then, she has taught in the Fine arts, and has shown her work in areas such as: San Francisco CA, Sacramento CA, Philadelphia, Bradford PA, New Jersey, Washington State, Stockton CA, St. Louis, Hungary, Ireland, Germany, and now Michigan. Diane loved being a teaching artist and has greatly been gifted by teaching in an inclusive population: from children to adults. She Continues to Exhibit her artwork throughout the state of Michigan Diane is an Intuition based painter, sculptor and photographer “All of my work is conceived from within. Just as nature shapes through time its landscapes, I too have been shaped by my past experiences. I try to discern “the essence of things”. Intuition and dream states are channels through which I arrive at the form and content of my work. I am able to focus beyond the immediate visual reality and allow myself to enter a dream state. I am then able to cultivate my images, feelings and forms which connect me to the unconscious world where my images are developed. My work conveys the passage of time and inner worlds Reflecting who I am as an artist and individual”. dmk To view a more detailed Bio and CV please visit her website.