Deb McCarroll

In January of this new year, I was offered a short residency on some property in rural Portugal owned by the lovely folks at Welcome Road Winery. I packed my bags and stowed 3 tubes of paint – red, yellow, and blue (these can make all the colors of the rainbow).

Once I landed in Lisbon I found an art supply store and with in my tortured Portuguese I asked for paper and tape. Luckily, the very friendly clerk was better at English and I found what I was able to buy some very good cold press watercolor paper.

The Portuguese weather was rainy with sun breaks so I was able to capture rain on the page and get some work accomplished outdoors on the gorgeous property. I incorporated the dark, loamy soil from the acreage in some of the works to inform the heart and soul of the place.

I’m looking forward to finding a venue to show these little gems in the coming year. For now I’m busy naming, matting and framing each piece. What a dream of an experience for any artist to be able to work in such a special place. Thank you to the award-winning Welcome Road Winery for their generosity and kindness.

Attic Gallery in Camas, WA has a rich and illustrious history. The gallery was started in, of all things, the attic of Diana Faville’s home in 1973. Since then the gallery has grown into an institution in the arts community, with collectors world wide. I’ve enjoyed the gallery’s representation since 2020, and was asked if I’d host a solo show for First Friday in February. To round out the show I was paired with sculptor Anna Wiancko-Chasman. The work complemented each other well, as Anna and I both draw upon influences from the natural world.

The reception was a lot of fun and the gallery was filled with people coming and going, as the conversation and the wine flowed. I met some lovely people, talked art and listened to the jazz stylings of virtuoso guitarist John Stowell. What a great night. A big thank you to Maria, Diana and Tommer for their generosity and care on behalf of local artists. If you are in the Portland, Oregon area, check out this gem of a gallery!

Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo hosts a yearly fundraiser/celebration called Jungle Party. Welcome Road Winery kindly offered a unique wine for the occasion and the winning auction bidder requested a special wine label celebrating the life of Melati, Woodland Park Zoo’s curious and playful orangutan. I was lucky enough to be selected to create the label. Here’s how the label was created.

More and more I find myself taking inspiration from natural processes, i.e. rain, snow, fire, etc. Finding new and innovative ways to organically use the machinations of the natural world seems to me a very harmonious and intuitive way to create. I’m excited to incorporate these elements into upcoming pieces and I invite you to join me on this journey. Find me on Instagram @deb_mccarroll for more video demonstrations, works currently in progress in the studio and more. Thanks for watching!

Icarus Lives 40″ x 40″ x 1.5″ (102cm x 102cm x 4cm) – Acrylic with gold leaf under selective gloss/matte varnish on stretched canvas.

I’m pleased to tell you that my painting (Icarus Lives 40″ x 40″), has placed in the Light Space and Time ‘Figurative‘ competition. The gallery received 623 entries from 27 different countries around the world. I placed in Special Merit – Paint & Other Media. There’s some really lovely and compelling work and I encourage you to peruse. Special shout out to dancer Savannah Fuentes for the inspiration and poses.

I’m always striving to bring complexity and depth to my work. I want to give viewers everything I can in a painting, so years ago I began to experiment with surface treatments to add a little more depth and richness to a work as a whole.

Light is inconstant and transitional. A painting is ever-changing in color and mood at different times of day and with various light sources so I wanted to be able to use this phenomenon to, literally add another layer to the viewing experience.

In contrasting varnish types, a painting can almost vibrate with energy in certain light or appear placid and peaceful from another angle or in evening, versus morning light.

At exhibitions of my work I love seeing people move around a painting, bobbing up and down to read a ghosted word or see blocks and strips of surface appear and fade. Strangers discuss the work. They smile and study the piece, nodding and pointing. To me, this is what art is. A human interaction, causing communication and introspection. It makes the creation of a painting an exciting prospect and I hope it encourages people to dive deep with a full, personal experience.

The Shanti Arts competition results for ‘The Dance’ group exhibition are in and I’m pleased to say my painting ‘Cafe Cantantes’ has been accepted. The 30″ x40″ work on cradled wood panel has since been sold and is hanging in a lovely home in New Orleans, LA. So happy to have been selected to be part of this vibrant show.

Thinking beyond the canvas or flat panel can lead to some revelatory and rewarding endeavors. I’ve been playing guitar since I was a wee lass so szhooshing up a six string feels like the natural evolution of the instrument. In the past year I got my hands on a Snapdragon folding travel guitar and I absolutely love it. The tone and workmanship of this little workhorse is incomparable. The front was fitted in bamboo and it was nice but I thought I could put my own mark on it. I’m very happy with the result and it’s a real pleasure to play. If you’ve laid some paint on your own axe, follow my Facebook link and lay it on me! I’d love to see what other folks have done.