Chandra DeBuse originally comes from the Midwest: land of practicality. She shared her hometown with the very practical and 
famous Vice Grip tool. Most recently, Chandra was a resident artist at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Tennessee. Now in Kansas City, Chandra has in independant studio and is set up work as a fulltime studio artist.
Chandra’s business model is anchored in a well-crafted a story that describes characters and scenarios, play and imagination. It is this story, a combination of make believe and everyday, that engages the viewer/customer.
Chandra describes the animals as important images that allow people to insert their personal stories or memories into the narrative. This balance of novelty and familiarity helps to keep her work on the table serving as functional pottery while encouraging smiles and humor.
The sketchbook is Chandra’s primary tool for developing ideas and stories and is equivalent to stream of consciousness writing- ideas flowing and evolving through a series of associations. Along the same lines, she often entices her studio visitors with a game of Exquisite Corpse to spark conversation and interaction.
In her first month in Kansas City, Chandra is teaching a color & surface class at Red Star Studios, where she also retails her work. She is concentrating on fulfilling her commitments to galleries, national group shows and a upcoming fall solo show!
A New kiln! (purchased with support of the Windgate Charitable Foundation, as part of the NCECA Emerging Artist recognition) is being shipped to her studio right now! Keep track of Chandras’s shows, news, and work through her blog DeBuse-On-The-Loose. Visit Chandra’s crafthaus page here!
