Debbie Carroll

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My work is about expressing what I observe when surveying the land of this region I call home. The challenge is to draw out the intrinsic beauty of the ordinary and overlooked. In my paintings, I strive to elevate my subjects, not to show the obvious, but to reveal the extraordinariness of the familiar.

The paintings flow from my curiosity to explore, push boundaries, and to show and share a different way of seeing the world around us. My home and inspiration is the West and Southwestern regions of the United States. Travel is the backbone of my work; it throws me into new circumstances and surroundings bringing new inspiration to take home with me as a result. 

A turning point in my work came while working with Taos painter and potter Stephen Kilborn. It wasn’t that I wanted to learn to paint just like him. Instead, he gave me permission to explore a different way of expressing myself. I admire artists who paint realism but that’s not where my voice sings. Graphic in style, I lean on my early love of drawing and design. I prefer using flat plains of color in unexpected, lyrical ways. Rhythm throughout my paintings is very intentional. Color comes in then as harmony. 

Through hard work and persistence, I continue to grow as an artist, and continue to challenge myself- my catch phrase being “nothing ventured, nothing gained”. Although I have always considered myself to have artistic ability, it has been quite liberating to pursue my work full time and experience the great amount of growth that comes with time spent at the easel.

Currently, I call the small community of Christoval, Texas home along with my husband (and framer extraordinaire) Mike of 16 Oaks Studio, and a multitude of somewhat tame feral cats.   My studio is steps away from our home and is where I spend most of my time when I am not traveling or spending time with family and friends.