Artist Statement

Deanna Fainelli’s art is rooted in exploration and discovery. Inspired by her travels and encounters with diverse cultures, she transforms memories, textures, and overlooked details into layered abstract, semi-abstract and figurative compositions. Using paint, paper, and found materials, she highlights the quiet poetry of the everyday, reflecting the beauty of ordinary life and the ephemeral qualities of objects touched by the passage of time.

Bio

Painting has always been Deanna Fainelli’s first love, though her creative journey has also led her through careers in graphic design and photojournalism. These experiences sharpened her eye for composition, narrative, and the subtle details that now define her work. Largely self-taught, she draws inspiration from the experimental layering of Robert Rauschenberg, the fluid movement of Helen Frankenthaler, and the sense of place in Richard Diebenkorn’s paintings.

Her painting practice blends acrylic paint and oil pigments with paper and other found materials to challenge conventional ideas of beauty, spark imagination, and create connection through shared visual language.

Deanna’s work has been exhibited throughout California, including at the SFMOMA Artist Gallery at Fort Mason, Stanford University, the Palm Springs Art Museum, and the city of Rancho Mirage. She has also been featured nationally through collaborations with CB2.

Now based in the Palm Springs area, Deanna often gathers inspiration while riding her bright blue bike — a reminder that creativity, like life, is best experienced in motion and with a spirit of curiosity.