Bold Journey

Meet Debora Guetta

December 28, 2023

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

Debora, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?
Finding purpose in life is a deeply personal ongoing process that it may evolve and change over time. Be patient with yourself, embrace self-discovery as it may take time and self-reflection to discover what truly brings meaning and fulfillment to your life. I personally allowed my purpose to unfold naturally as I navigate through my life’s experiences. When finding my purpose, I consider what deeply matters to me, what I enjoy doing, and what I am naturally drawn to. When I spend time in my art studio is when I feel alive and fulfilled as I work on my projects I enter in another dimension. I reflect on my own unique skills, talents, and strengths. This gives me clues about how I can make a positive impact and find purpose in utilizing those strengths. I also allow myself to always improve those skills, as there is always room for improvement and I keep in close contact with my group of talented photographers. This helps me take a better photo, learning a different technique, expand on those cut and weave artworks I’ve been working on for so many years. Setting meaningful goals aligned with my values and passions has helped me find my purpose. I ask myself what is that I want to achieve and this keeps me in alignment with where I want to go. I ask myself how I want to contribute in different areas of my life, such as my career, relationships, personal growth, or community involvement. At the same time discipline enables me to manage my time effectively, prioritize tasks, and meet deadlines. It helps me stay accountable to myself and others, ensuring that I follow through on my commitments and complete projects in a timely manner. Another powerful way to find my purpose is helping others and contributing to something larger than myself. Volunteering for causes or organizations that align with your values and interests. This gives me a sense of fulfillment and meaning and it is rewarding on a personal level. This is when I decided to join as a Board Of Director of the non-profit at We Do It Together, where we dedicate in reshaping narratives and imagery that contribute to the worldwide marginalization of women.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I create moments! When I work on my art it feels as if I am shaping a new dimension of reality. This sensation has been with me since my childhood, particularly during my school years, when I used to spend so much time drawing and panting. My passion for graphic art, photojournalism, and documentary films had given way to the demands of family and the unexpected ascent of my partner’s career. In 2010 I made up my mind to make a new start, picked up a camera and began the intuitive process of reframing who I was, one image at a time. A return to artmaking meant embarking, in a big, long, introspective journey. I learned to translate my thoughts and emotions into visual stories. It was then that I revealed a series of photographs titled, “Out Of The Shadow,” a haunting body of images that reflected my desire to shed the trappings of the past and position myself as a woman artist in the world. This is when I started my journey to assert myself as a woman in society. This journey continued as I experimented with the realities and experiences of my life. In the next body of work “Landed” I introduced a new technique by manipulating photographic prints in unique ways. By cutting and hand-weaving together separate images of the same metropolitan scene, I crafted a heightened sense of space and movement. Each photo is shredded in the same way the chaos in everyone’s life shreds us apart. It needs to be pulled apart and sorted out to allow us to rebuild. Once each strip is put together in a new arrangement, you’ll realize that you have recreated a new life, a new city, and landed in a new parallel world. This helps you become the person you want to be, build the city you want to live and reconstruct the life you want to live. I see this new world from many angles as a woman, mother, daughter, wife and artist.
Now that I have begun this journey of rebuilding, there are countless layers that I add, take away, or change about the cities that I visit, the people I meet, and experiences I live.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Creativity, perseverance, and curiosity are the three qualities that have greatly influenced my artistic journey. I bring a fresh perspective and imaginative approach to my subjects and compositions. Through experimentation, I create visually captivating images. Additionally, I utilize storytelling techniques to evoke specific narratives and emotions, resulting in unique and thought-provoking artwork. During my artistic journey, obstacles like creative block, criticism, and rejection are common. Perseverance becomes essential to overcoming these obstacles. It involves accepting and transforming criticism into impactful artwork. Having a curious mindset has motivated me to explore new techniques, experiment with different mediums, and push the limits of my creativity. At the same time, embracing continued learning allows me to grow, evolve, and improve my skills over time. Artistic development is a personal journey and progress takes time. To best develop and improve your artistic skills, practice regularly, seek feedback, learn from others, and stay curious and open to new experiences. Most importantly maintain confidence in yourself and believe in your artistic ability.

As we end our chat, is there a book you can leave people with that’s been meaningful to you and your development?
One of the books that played an important role is “The Artist’s Way” by Julia Cameron. This is a well-regarded book that aims to help individuals nurture their creativity and overcome creative block. It offers a 12-week program designed to help readers discover and recover their creative selves. For example, the concept of “morning pages,” which involves writing three pages of stream-of-consciousness every morning, has helped me clear my mind and access my inner thoughts and emotions. Additionally, the idea of “artist dates,” such as visiting a museum, going for a nature walk or exploring a new neighborhood, has encouraged me to prioritize activities that nurture and inspire my creative selves. These concepts and practices have helped me to tap into my creativity, develop a deeper understanding of myself and my creative potential, and live more authentically.

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