Meet Deborah Kruger

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Deborah Kruger. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Deborah below.

Hi Deborah, really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?
Finding my purpose has been a life time activity. I am fortunate that since childhood, I knew I was an artist. I have had many people shine a light on that path for me over the years and they have helped validate my purpose. Having these mentors has prevented me from struggling with imposter syndrome. And knowing my purpose has helped me cultivate a life style which includes self-care, self-discipline and the pleasure of accomplishment.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
One of the great things about an interview, is that it gives me a chance to see the arc of my art career and how organic it has been. Since childhood, I have loved to be in nature and to make things, especially with fabric. My early interests in ecology, activism and feminism have coalesced into a body of work and art practice that embody all of these aspects of my life.

I make art with recycled materials, especially recycled plastic, and all my images are about endangered birds and languages. I employ 6 Mexican women in my art studio and we work collaboratively to create museum-scale artworks that are both decorative and provocative.

There has been explosive interest in my work this year and I have shown pieces in Venice and Guadalajara and have shows coming up in Toronto, New York and Perugia, Italy. I am especially proud that two of my large pieces were just acquired by the Museum of Arts and Design in New York City.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
It might sound odd, but having strong business and marketing skills have been essential to creating an international art career. I counter-balance that with having a strong spiritual life. I guess you could say that I have my head in the clouds and my feet on the ground!

If you are early on your art path, I encourage you to dream big and surround yourself with people who believe in you and who will help you. No toxic people allowed! Find a mentor, someone who will happily show you the way and cheer you on. Replace negative self-talk with positive affirmations and loads of self-love.

Do you think it’s better to go all in on our strengths or to try to be more well-rounded by investing effort on improving areas you aren’t as strong in?
We all have special strengths and visions that make us and our art, unique. I think that success comes from honing those special qualities. Being well-rounded means being unfocused and scattered. Many years ago I read a book called the 4-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris. It was a huge game-changer because it shifted my paradigm to focusing on what I do best (and enjoy the most) and delegating the rest to others. This willingness to delegate and get help is what creates the space for you to dive deeply into what only you can do and what you love the most. For me, this has looked like developing a team practice where I work with and empower other women by giving them meaningful work, which in turn gives me the space to let my creativity run wild!

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Doug Winter for the artist photo Carlos Diaz Corona for the art images

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