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About

I'm Debbie, a UK artist based in rural Norfolk, close to the Suffolk border.

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Inspired by the fens, fields and woods around my home, and the wild creatures that live there, my paintings are a celebration of the magical beauty of nature.

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I combine abstract and realism, giving the work an ethereal quality that adds a hint of the mystical.

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I also paint murals and other artwork to commission.

Everyday Enchantment & Looking Beyond the Obvious

I believe we can choose how we experience the world around us. If we believe in the magic of the everyday, we will find it.

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I choose to be enchanted by the natural world, to stop and notice the beauty of small things, to feel the spirit of the landscape and the atmosphere of a moment. To observe and feel a connection to wild creatures, note the slow changes that mark the turning of the year's wheel and embrace the beauty of the countryside in all its moods. And I choose to be open to the possibilities of secret lives and things unseen - creatures of myth and legend, or merely those hidden by the night or beneath the surfaces of land and water.

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This is what I mean by everyday enchantment, and I make art for those who share the feeling!

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How I Work

I begin my paintings working intuitively, with random mark making and multiple layers of glazes creating texture and depth.

 

I often use techniques and tools from my previous life as a decorative painter in these layers, adding and removing areas of paint until a form begins to suggest itself. It sounds random, and in one sense it is, but it's guided by the imagery and feelings in my mind that I want to express. I then move on to good old fashioned painting with brushes to create the more defined images.

 

I enjoy using leaves, grasses and seed heads in my work, both as printing tools and as collage. I love the idea of incorporating natural objects within the painting, encased in its layers. It deepens the connection to nature further. More recently I have been experimenting with creating my own collage papers using a gel plate, and with eco-dyeing watercolour paper using botanical elements as a new type of surface to paint on.

A Bit More About Me

Though born and raised on the outskirts of London, I'm a country girl at heart and have always felt happiest when surrounded by nature. 

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I have lived in the East Anglian countryside for most of my adult life, apart from a 5 year spell living by the sea on North East Scotland's dramatic Banffshire coast. Returning home in 2019, I now live and work in a Norfolk village close to the border with Suffolk and share my home with my husband, 2 cats and 3 rescued greyhounds. I paint in a purpose-built studio, tucked away in its own hidden garden, surrounded by trees, flowers and a wildlife pond.

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My fascination with myths, magic and the supernatural, I put down to my Celtic ancestry. My Irish grandmother would spend hours telling me stories from her homeland, tales of gods and goddesses, phantom hounds and horses, and the Little People. She also taught me to draw, and I loved to bring my fantasy worlds to life in pictures.

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Although I studied art in school, and continued to draw, paint and create for pleasure, it was only after raising my children that I decided to make it a career. After gaining a diploma in interior design, I decided I wanted a more hands-on outlet for my creativity, and went on to study decorative paint finishes and mural painting. I started my own business, Art and Illusion, and spent the next 14 years working on a wide variety of painting commissions throughout East Anglia and beyond.

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Over time I felt an increasing desire to express my own ideas and feelings through my paintings and this is now my main focus.

 

I do, however, still love the process of interpreting a client's ideas and bringing them to life, and I am happy to discuss artwork commissions, including large mural-style paintings on panels, canvas or wallpaper. 

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Upcoming Events

2024.

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Fri 12th - Sun 14th July

Following the success of the Under One Roof exhibition at East Harling church in July 2022, we have been invited to

stage another exhibition in the summer of 2024, and plan for this to become a regular biennial event.

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The exhibition will be open from 10.00 am - 4.00 pm (11.00 am - 4.00 pm Sun).

Entry is free

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Studio Notes subscribers will also receive an invitation to the private viewing on 12th July.

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You can sign up here

Recent Events & Exhibitions

Sept/Oct 2023

Norfolk Open Studios &

South Breckland Art Trail

The Hidden Garden Studio

East Harling, Norfolk

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August 2023

Inspired By Nature

Open Exhibition

Suffolk Wildlife Trust

Redgrave & Lopham Fen

 

April 2023

New Buckenham Arts

Open Exhibition

New Buckenham, Norfolk

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October 2022

Swaffham Visual Arts Festival

Open Exhibition

The Assembly Rooms, Swaffham 

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August 2022

Inspired by Nature

Suffolk Wildlife Trust, Redgrave & Lopham Fen

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July 2022

Under One Roof

East Harling Church

(Joint organiser)

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September/October 2021

Norfolk Open Studios

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