Deborah Tomlin

In 2022 Deborah Tomlin was diagnosed with breast cancer from a routine mammogram. Tomlin underwent treatment which consisted of three different surgeries including a bilateral mastectomy. Recovery from these surgeries required her to examine herself closely to integrate the new physical and emotional self. In Breast Cancer Series #1 and Breast Cancer Series #2, Tomlin chooses to paint her scars and unfamiliar body, the evolution of acceptance of a new self without the curve and weight of breasts. Painting on top of overflowing and overlapping text expresses her grief and anger. Stitching directly on the canvas with yarn and thread reframes Tomlin's sutures and scars through the lens of darning and mending, traditionally women’s work, transforming an object ripped and torn into a material stronger and more beautiful by the act of repair.

In 2022 Deborah Tomlin was diagnosed with breast cancer from a routine mammogram. Tomlin underwent treatment which consisted of three different surgeries including a bilateral mastectomy. Recovery from these surgeries required her to examine herself closely to integrate the new physical and emotional self. In Breast Cancer Series #1 and Breast Cancer Series #2, Tomlin chooses to paint her scars and unfamiliar body, the evolution of acceptance of a new self without the curve and weight of breasts. Painting on top of overflowing and overlapping text expresses her grief and anger. Stitching directly on the canvas with yarn and thread reframes Tomlin's sutures and scars through the lens of darning and mending, traditionally women’s work, transforming an object ripped and torn into a material stronger and more beautiful by the act of repair.

In 2022 Deborah Tomlin was diagnosed with breast cancer from a routine mammogram. Tomlin underwent treatment which consisted of three different surgeries including a bilateral mastectomy. Recovery from these surgeries required her to examine herself closely to integrate the new physical and emotional self. In these portraits Tomlin does not shy away from the effects of age and medication on the face but instead features them.

Deborah Tomlin was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2022. Treatment left her with physical and emotional scars and an unfamiliar body. In an attempt to reintegrate her new self image Tomlin began combing through images of her experience. This led Tomlin to a series of drawings based on mammography films of her breasts taken throughout her diagnosis. In Mammography Journal- Written on My Body, text from journal entries is layered behind and beside the mammography image to transform the clinical to the personal, expressing her anger and grief.

Deborah Tomlin was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2022. Treatment left her with physical and emotional scars and an unfamiliar body. In an attempt to reintegrate her new self image Tomlin began combing through images of her experience. This led Tomlin to a series of drawings based on mammography films of her breasts taken throughout her diagnosis. In Mammography Journal- Written on My Body and Mammography Journal-Healing Still, text from journal entries is layered behind and beside the mammography image to transform the clinical to the personal, expressing her anger and grief. Tomlin stitches directly into the paper with yarn and thread, creating collaged scars to reframe her sutures through the lens of darning and mending. Traditionally women’s work, mending transforms an object ripped and torn into a material stronger and more beautiful by the act of repair.