Norma Jean Deak (1946– ) is an american performance artist, writer, and director whose work draws upon words as a "primary means for communicating the interior lives of her characters". She has written, staged, and performed a number of texts about women who manifest psychological disorders such as insomnia, paranoia, and memory loss. ^[1]

Education

Deak received her B.A. and M.A. degree from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Shortly after graduation, she studied experimental theater on a grant form the French government. In 1974, she studied under Eleanor Antin in a class at the University of California, San Diego.

Career and Works

In her early career, Deak worked with Stuart Sherman, Richard Foreman, and Robert Wilson in New York. Her first piece was So To Speak which she created while in a class under Eleanor Antin at the University of California in San Diego.

Performances

• So to Speak, 1976 (San Diego)
• Passe Simple, 1977 (New York then Bologna and Genoa, Italy)

References

Further reading

• Brave Black Women: From Slavery to the Space Shuttle
• Viewfinders: Black Women Photographers by Jeanne Moutoussammy-Ashe

Category:1914 births Category:1995 deaths Category:Place of birth missing Category:American women photographers Category:American photographers Category:University of Denver alumni Category:20th-century women artists