Stephanie Deumer Limited Edition Print
Limited edition print by Stephanie Deumer from “A Diamond is Forever”. Inkjet print, 11”x14”, image size 8”x10” signed and numbered, edition of 10.
A Diamond is Forever is a sculptural video installation exploring longstanding perpetuations of whiteness and patriarchy in the extraction, production, circulation, and marketing of diamonds. Culling appropriated footage from the media, such as commercials, films, and music videos, the work considers how concepts of nature and commodity are used to both validate and scrutinize women and people of color in relation to diamonds. Diamonds figure literally in the work as well as figuratively, embodying the fractured and multitudinous aspects of the enigma of ‘woman’ created by the diamond industry and its market economy. The project was selected for the 2022 Prospect Art NEW WORK Focus on Los Angeles commissioning grant program.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Stephanie Deumer is a Canadian visual artist currently living and working in Los Angeles, California. Her multi-media installations often highlight interrelations between different kinds of reproduction—including biological, visual, mechanical, and social. More particularly, the exploration of feminine constructs is a crucial through-line in Deumer’s practice. Complexities of female identity formation figure prominently, specifically in relation to language, media, science, and technology.
Deumer holds a BA from the University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada, and an MFA from California Institute of the Arts, Valencia, California. She was a fellow at the Whitney Independent Study Program in New York and has been awarded grants from the Canada Arts Council, Robert Rauschenberg Foundation, and Bar-Fund LA. She has been an artist in residence at Factory Media Centre, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada (2021); Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, Banff, Alberta, Canada (2018); Cerritos College, Cerritos, California (2016); and The REEF, Los Angeles, California (2015). Her work has been profiled in ArchDaily, Dezeen, and CalArts’ 24700, and featured in The Art Newspaper, World Architecture, Time Out Riyadh, Palm Springs Life, and Creative Boom, among others. She has exhibited internationally in Canada, the United States, the UK, Ecuador, and Saudi Arabia.
In 2022, Deumer participated in Desert X Al’Ula in Saudi Arabia, creating her largest installation to date: a solar-powered video installation that cultivated native plants. As part of her continued exploration of simulacra and immersive environments, the work brought to life the spectacle of biological reproduction through technological and visual means.