Debra Hampton was born and raised in the suburbs of Los Angeles, California.
She began a diverse art education in the studio department of CSLA, later transferring to CSUF to complete a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art History focused on European papal portraiture and social/political murals of Latin America. Ms. Hampton moved to New York City in 1996 to obtain a Master of Art degree from New York University in Humanities and Social Thought with a certificate in Museum Studies. While at NYU, she was also an adjunct student at ITP further nurturing interests in the cross-sections of art, technology and collaborative media.
Her work has spanned various unconventional medium and process while investigating issues of commodity, identity and appropriation. She is best known for mixed-media mashup collage portraits which are created from 1000s of magazine cutouts, splattered ink, and intricately stippled shapes. Accompanying the portrait series are sculpted objects such as headdresses, talisman, and full-size armor. Recently, she was selected by the New York City Department of Transportation to design & implement a public mural spanning 600 feet of pedestian/bicycle pathways along the Brooklyn waterfront.
Ms. Hampton's work is in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art Permanent Drawing Collection, and The Frederick R. Weisman Foundation, and has been featured in publications such as ArtReview, the New York Times, New York Arts, FlavorPill, Queens Chronicle, Etapes Graphiques, and The New York Art World. She has been recipient of the Chashama AREA Studio Residency and an A.I.R. Gallery fellowship.
Represented by Priska Juschka Fine Art in New York and maintains a studio in Long Island City.