On a painting trip in Brittany, France
I’ve always been interested in the ways we make meaning—through words, images, stories, and creative expression.
My own path has moved through several worlds. I trained as a clinical social worker and began my career in mental health and health care before moving into communications, writing, and digital media. Over the years, I’ve written and developed content for organizations and publications, managed web and communications projects, and worked independently as a writer and consultant.
Alongside that work, art became an increasingly important part of my life and creative practice. I work primarily in acrylic, mixed media, gouache, charcoal, and collage, with an evolving interest in abstraction, color, shape, observation, and place.
Living with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) has also deepened my interest in the relationship between creativity and well-being. I’m the author of Wayfinding Through Cancer: Tools for Creating a Healing Art Journal and have developed and led workshops using art-making and writing as tools for reflection, exploration, and connection.
More recently, I’ve become particularly interested in arts on prescription, neuroaesthetics, and the growing body of research exploring how participation in the arts can contribute to individual and community well-being.
Today, I continue to write, make art, and take on selected freelance and consulting projects—particularly those involving storytelling, research, creative thinking, and communications for arts, nonprofit, health, and mission-driven organizations.
What connects these different parts of my work is curiosity: paying attention, asking questions, making connections, and finding meaningful ways to communicate what I discover.
Deb Hemley 