How Three Women Artists Are Reimagining the World Through Paint, Fiber, and Passion|Franziska Dörfel, Deborah, and Celeste Cisneros
When artists share their work, lives, challenges, inspirations, and dreams, you get something tangible—something moving. In this article, we’ve had the chance to hear directly from three incredible women artists, Franziska Dörfel, Deborah, and Celeste Cisneros, who’ve generously shared pieces of their journeys: the highs, the struggles, the “aha” moments, and everything in between.
Each story is as unique as the artist behind it, yet a beautiful thread connects them all—paint, fibre, and passion. These elements fuel a deep love for creating, a hunger for growth, and a drive to express something that words alone can’t capture. Whether they’re overcoming illness, navigating identity, rediscovering art after years away, or embracing colour as an emotional language, these artists are reshaping what it means to live a creative life.
We’ve learned that art isn’t just about what you make—it’s about how you see the world, process pain and joy, and connect with others through that vulnerability. Their journeys remind us that creativity is not always neat or easy, but is always worth it. Perhaps most powerfully, they show us that something truly inspiring happens when women support each other and share their truths.
Weaving Environmental Awareness into Art
Deborah Kruger’s art doesn’t just hang on a wall—it soars—literally. Her large-scale, fibre-based installations often resemble flocks of birds mid-flight, made not from feathers but from recycled plastics imprinted with endangered bird species and extinct languages. Kruger, trained in textile design at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York, merges surface patterning with a deep environmental consciousness rooted in a life-changing encounter with Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring.
“My artwork is now a blend of my decorative background and my environmental concerns,” Kruger says. “At FIT, I learned how to use the Met’s textile repository for inspiration. That still shows up in my work, especially with influences from traditional clothing like Asian kimonos and Latin American huipils.”
From her dual studios in Durham, North Carolina, and Chapala, Mexico, Kruger creates with purpose and community. Her production studio in Mexico facilitates her large-scale installations and empowers local women through employment and skill-sharing.
Her recent career highlights are inspiring: winning the Grand Prize of the Keller Prize, having her work acquired by the Museum of Arts and Design (MAD) in New York City, and having upcoming exhibitions at the Mint Museum and Block Gallery. Deborah’s art reminds us that the extinction of birds, languages, and cultures is not just a loss of the past but a warning for the future.
“I want my art to be beautiful enough to draw you in, but meaningful enough to make you stay and think.”
All my artwork is made with recycled materials and encourages dialogue about how we can preserve wild spaces, animals, especially vulnerable birds, and protect habitat for all species including humans.
To learn more about Deborah, click on the links below.
Franziska Dörfel: Painting the Inner World
Germany-based Franziska Dörfel invites us to look inward. Born in East Germany in 1982 and trained as both a wood sculptor and painter, Franziska’s journey has always been about duality—between tradition and innovation, the abstract and the figurative, silence and revelation.
“My work deals with the duality of human existence and the deeper, often contradictory complexity of life,” Dörfel explains.
Her oil paintings begin informally, as abstract color fields. Then, through intuitive layering, she brings in figures and symbols—creating a conversation between what’s felt and what’s seen. Drawing from old master techniques while consciously incorporating contemporary disruptions, she builds tension in her work that challenges the viewer’s perceptions.
“With the awakening of the self, I saw myself more and more as an observer of other people. My inner world has always been a safe space for me to process and understand the outer one.”
Her creative process is deeply introspective and meditative, grounded in silence. Franziska’s work has been featured in Lines and Curves by the Arts to Hearts Project and is part of several private collections in Germany. Now setting her sights on international exhibitions, her paintings are poised to resonate across borders.
My paintings visualise inner worlds. They show different levels of inner spaces that move between consciousness and subconsciousness and try to understand the human being, with his emotions and entanglements, the core of his actions.
To learn more about Franziska, visit the links below.
Celeste Cisneros: Feminine Power Meets Creative Curiosity
From the ballet studio to the Parsons School of Design, 20-year-old Celeste Cisneros is redefining what it means to be a multidimensional artist. Based in New York City and originally from San Francisco, Celeste blends the elegance of dance with the intimacy of hand-drawn illustrations.
“I grew up as a ballet dancer and choreographer. That creative process allowed me to dive deep into artistic expression. Now, I intertwine all the art forms I’ve been immersed in.”
Her work, mainly using colored pencils, features influential female figures that explore the boundaries between fantasy, reality, and societal expectations. In her upcoming exhibition Free of Propaganda, Celeste centres her pieces on female empowerment, encouraging viewers to question their perceptions of truth and identity.
“I’m fascinated by how the world is perceived internally and externally. Through my muses—mostly women—I try to express those dual perceptions and the emotional complexity within them.”
Celeste has already been featured in Lines and Curves by Arts to Hearts, a portfolio partner with Women in Arts Network. Her art is bold, thoughtful, and emotionally charged—a visual protest and a celebration of womanhood all in one.
My purpose stands in creating art that justifies truth, empowers the voiceless, and circulates curiosity in the way our society functions together.
To learn more about Celeste, click on the links below.
As we wrap up these conversations, one thing is clear—every artist featured in this piece has shown us that the creative path is rarely linear, but always full of meaning. They’ve shared their triumphs and setbacks, their bold experiments and quiet reflections. From rediscovering their artistic voice after years away to exploring the emotions that colour each brushstroke, these women have reminded us that art is a powerful mirror—it reflects not only the world around us but the world within.
We’ve learned that being an artist isn’t just about making something beautiful—it’s about resilience, healing, storytelling, risk-taking, and finding your way back to yourself. It’s about honouring your past, being curious in the present, and dreaming into the future. Most of all, it’s about courage to keep going, even when the path is uncertain.
Thank you to these incredible women for letting us in. Their honesty, creativity, and depth have inspired us—and hopefully, they’ve sparked something in you, too.
Stay tuned to the Women in Arts Network for more stories amplifying diverse, powerful contemporary art voices. Visit our website and follow us on Instagram.
