Debra was raised in the farming and ranching country of central Nebraska.
She realized her passion for creating art at an early age, but was some-
what frustrated at the limited educational opportunities that rural Nebraska
presented. Her early art education consisted of lessons in oil painting from
an interested grade school teacher, and, in high school, correspondence
courses from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln. Attending college at
Kearney State (now the University of Nebraska at Kearney), she finally
found the resources and encouragement she needed, and her passion for
painting grew. A move to Colorado in the late 70's further developed her
love of the landscape in art, and she now paints the mountain, prairie,
and wildlife scenes that are her very backyard.
Recently, Debra has studied under locally and nationally known artists,
including Patti Andre, Duke Beardsley, Lorenzo Chavez, Mark Hansen,
Jeanne MacKenzie, Mark Silvers, and her mentor, Clive Tyler. Her most
recent awards include a "Best in Show" at the Artist's Association of
Northern Colorado 2006 "Capture the County" all-medium show (juror Russ Tanner) and an Honorable Mention in the 2007 "Celebration of Color" show (juror Patti Andre). She also won the Colorado Pastel Society Award in the 2007 Thompson Valley Summer Show for her pastel painting, "Ditch Road, Summer". Debra's work hangs in private collections across the United States and as far away as Singapore. She is currently represented by Art on Mountain gallery in Fort Collins, Colorado, and Artisan's gallery in Laramie, Wyoming. Debra's work was also exhibited at both the 2007 and 2008 Western Spirit Shows at the Old West Museum in Cheyenne, Wyoming.
Debra belongs to the Artist's Association of Northern Colorado, the Pastel Society of America, the Pastel Society of Colorado, the Pastel Society of the Northern Rockies, and the Laramie Art Guild.
