Oils
Debra learned to paint in oils at the age of 9, guided by her artist father. She created her own “exhibits” in school, and won awards in national student art competitions. She studied fine art at the University of Guelph, and made a living undertaking commissioned work and successfully exhibited in juried shows in Canadian art galleries. The responsibilities of parenthood pulled her away from artistic pursuits, but she has returned to her art with a passion, working primarily in oils and acrylic.
Debra’s recent work has been exhibited in several international juried shows. She was selected as a Distinguished Artist in the Portrait edition, February 2021, of Art Ascent magazine, and she was awarded a Talent Show prize in the 2023 International Juried Art Competition for Figurative Work at the Art Show International Gallery. She describes her work as ‘imagined realism’. Human emotion and our relationships with wildlife are her focus. Her paintings combine landscape, portrait and wildlife elements to depict the human spirit and our relationships with the other creatures sharing the planet with us.