DEBORAH LAWRENCE SCHAFER
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Dreamwalking in the Tender Garden/
Soñar despierta

In this series, I use the seeming simplicity of watercolor to explore ancestral memory, forgotten cosmologies, and our intrinsic connection to the natural and cosmic worlds. These paintings and assemblages emerge through a lyrical, intuitive process—each one a quiet pilgrimage of rediscovery and a return to the essence of home.

Rooted in my maternal lineage and inspired by the tenderness of the living world, this series dwells in a dreamlike state—where the boundaries between spirit, memory, and landscape dissolve. Dreamwalking evokes a realm beyond the material, a place untouched by ideology, where awe and wonder orient us toward a more beautiful, just, and emotionally connected existence.
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In a time marked by division and distraction, these artworks offer moments of joy, presence, and poetic resistance. They imagine art as a vessel for healing and envisioning alternative futures—where reverence for the natural world reminds us of our place within it. Like walking through a forest, the work invites the viewer into a state of spiritual attunement, where the relationships between humans, animals, and the more-than-human world are felt deeply and tenderly.
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Ripples from the Cosmos, 2024, 2025. Watercolor, gouache, and graphite on Arches cotton paper, 22.5 x 30 inches
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Flight through the Veil, 2024. Watercolor and gouache on Arches cotton paper, 22.5 x 30 inches
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Wild Is the Wind, 2024. Watercolor and gouache on Arches cotton paper, 22.5 x 30 inches
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Spacetime Evermore, 2024. Watercolor on Arches cotton paper, 51.25 x 90.5 inches
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The Messenger, 2024. Watercolor and graphite on Arches cotton paper, 61.5 x 51.25 inches
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Mirage, Evaporating, 2024. Watercolor and gouache on Arches cotton paper, 60.5 X 51.25 inches
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Everything has always been here, 2024. Watercolor, gouache, aluminum, gold, and graphite on Arches cotton paper, 59.5 x 51.25 inches
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Air from My Mouth, 2024 Watercolor, gouache, and gesso on Arches cotton paper, 63.5 x 51.25 inches

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Liminal Strand, 2024. Watercolor, ink, and gold on Arches cotton paper, and handblown glass, 19 x 10 x 10 inches

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Winged Soul, 2024. Watercolor on Arches cotton paper, 51.25 x 37.5 inches
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Night Winds, 2024. Watercolor on Arches cotton paper, 51.25 x 78 inches
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We are an ocean (Horror Vacui), 2024. Watercolor on Arches cotton paper, 51.25 x 75.5 inches
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I am a drop (Amor Vacui), 2024. Watercolor on Arches cotton paper, 78.75 x 51.25 inches
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Unbounded I, 2024. Watercolor, Austrian crystal, PVA, and UV protection spray on Arches cotton paper. Preserved moss, natural quartz crystal, and hot-melt adhesive on a galvanized steel tray with a powder coat finish, 2 1/4 x 6 1/2 x 6 1/2 inches
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Thorns & Stars, 2024. Watercolor and gouache on Arches cotton paper, each: 30 x 22.5 inches
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Revelation, 2025. Watercolor on Arches cotton paper, 59 7/8 x 51.25 inches
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Ship to a (new) paradise (Ark of values), 2025. Watercolor on Arches cotton paper, preserved roses and moss, stones, antique boat, PVC coated steel wire, PVA, and hot-melt adhesive, 25 x 26 x 15 inches
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Song for a cruel world, 2025. Watercolor and graphite on Arches cotton paper, 79.25 x 51.25 Inches
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Restoration, 2025. Glass, quartz crystal, and glue, 12 x 20.5 x 11.25 inches
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Message I, 2025. Watercolor on Arches cotton paper, 16 x 12 inches
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Message II, 2025, Watercolor on Arches cotton paper, 16 x 12 inches
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Message IV, 2025. Watercolor on Arches cotton paper, 16 x 12 inches
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Message III, 2025. Watercolor on Arches cotton paper, 16 x 12 inches
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Message V, 2025. Watercolor and gouache on Arches cotton paper, 16 x 12 inches
2025 © Deborah Lawrence Schafer
  • Home
  • RECENT ARTWORK
    • Unfixed Memories
    • Dreamwalking in the tender garden/ Soñar despierta
    • Corazones cosidos
    • Reflexiones
  • ARCHIVE
    • Botanical Offshoot
    • Botanical paintings
    • COLORS OF LAKE TAHOE
    • Bear Island
    • La Mar
    • Fog
    • View
    • Water and fire
  • About
  • Contact
  • Blog