Her evolution as a jewelry designer and artist is tied to her love of travel as well as a deep appreciation for the Texas Hill Country and its environs.
A few weeks back we shared a photograph on Instagram featuring an intriguing Johnson City aviary storefront. To our delight, the image prompted a swift response from one of our own IG followers, artist Debbie Carroll of Austin, to share with us a photo of a painting she’d made of the exact same storefront.
Birds of a feather, eh?
Isn’t it delightful? The whole social media exchange led us to invite her to share the story of her creative life with you all. Enjoy!
On her personal art-making journey
“I didn’t come from a family who really cared about art. While growing up, it was my teachers, beginning as early as elementary school, who recognized that I had artistic abilities.
One of my high school teachers, Mr. George Blanas was a particular champion of mine and encouraged me to study art in college, helping me prepare my portfolio for admission to Northern Illinois University. I majored in art my first two years with the idea that I’d go into graphic design, but that plan was derailed when I didn’t pass portfolio and had to change my major.
To this day I regret not majoring in another area of the art field like illustration or printmaking, but instead chose to go into fashion merchandising, partly because it was an interest of mine and thought it would be a good way to earn my living.
Of course, that quickly changed with a student trip to Europe after graduation, that broadened my horizons and whet my appetite for further travels. I ended up working in the travel industry for many years, and never regretted this detour, because the traveling I was able to do exposed me to museums, architecture and culture that I studied in my art history courses at Northern. It was travel that actually brought me full circle back to making my own art.”
On Santa Fe–and the intersection of art and travel
“About the time I met my husband, I had traveled to New Mexico and was instantly drawn to the high desert and the light, and of course the art I saw in the galleries and museums in Taos and Santa Fe. We made several trips there over the years, first as a couple and later as a family, it was this repeated exposure to art that I loved and the depictions of this incredibly beautiful landscape that made me want to paint. I had not really painted seriously up until this point, only a little bit in high school and none at all in college. My first attempts were frustrating, I had always drawn in pencil and my images were realistically rendered. I found color to be a joy to work with, but was not happy with my attempts at Realism.
So I shelved the painting for a good long while, and unintentionally began a career in making jewelry. I say unintentional, because initially the jewelry was for myself, but people began to notice and remark upon it. My mother-in-law, Bettie, was really into selling her items at craft shows at the time, and I designed some labels for her products, in return to she offered to sell some of my jewelry so I made several bracelets, and a few necklaces. She ended up having to cancel the show, and faced with the inventory, I decided to host a show of my own at the house. The open house was very successful, much beyond my expectations, and a jewelry design business was born.”
On the movement to painting
“I continued to make and sell jewelry for most of my children’s elementary school years, but the itch to paint was definitely still there. On of our many trips to Taos, I discovered that a favorite pottery artist of ours, Stephen Kilborn, also taught painting workshops and I decided to treat myself as part of a milestone birthday. I figured it was now or never, and the workshop was just the push I needed. It was outside of my comfort zone, Abstract versus Realism, and using watercolor which I previously found to be a difficult medium to work in. My goal was to loosen my style and I actually achieved it the very first day, by learning to just experiment and keep an open mind. I continued to work on my own after the workshop, but was able to drop in a few more times every year when we vacationed in Taos. The big revelation for me was, that perfection is overrated, and that I loved art that was an expression of the artist. Feeling free to abstract shapes and play with color was key to my development as a painter. I do still make jewelry, but find my time at the easel to be a very fulfilling experience and the thrill of selling a painting is very exciting! As an artist, you really feel that you’ve connected with someone when they want to have your art in their home.”
On her work today
“My work today consists of mostly landscapes and what I refer to as “Texas Botanicals.” I love painting roads, big skies, and clouds as they afford endless opportunities to stylize shapes and play with color. Having moved to the South as an adult, I’ve always had a fascination with cacti, and also love painting all varieties in addition to yucca plants and agaves, their sculptural shapes really lend themselves to a good composition. Of course, I still love painting the adobe churches of New Mexico, which was the subject of the very first workshop I took with Stephen. I’ve recently added pet portraits to the mix, painting mostly dogs, some cats and the occasional donkey. I love dogs in particular and have had a lot of fun with the pet portrait commissions I’ve done, it’s fun to see the piece take shape and the personality emerge in a painted image.”
On the Hill Country region as creative inspiration
“We hope to move to the Hill Country proper this next year. I love the open skies, rolling hills, fluffy clouds and that feeling that there is a new discovery around the every corner. It has been very exciting to see the wine industry take shape, the vineyards really remind me of France and add a sophisticated beauty to an already beautiful area. Some of my favorite areas are Wimberley, Boerne, Blanco, Johnson City, Hye (and the William Chris winery) and of course Fredericksburg. I’ve recently gotten to see a little more of Mason and the beautiful courthouse on the square. The drive from Dripping Springs to Wimberley on RR 12, is fantastic, so picturesque. One of our favorite pastimes is to take a new road to see where it leads, there are many more places to explore, making Central Texas such a great place to live!”
Where you can find Debbie’s work
“Currently my paintings may be viewed at the Assemblage Contemporary Craftsman Gallery in Buda, and there are a few pieces at Ambrose Vin Taj in Austin. Like most artists, July is spent lining up events for the holidays, and I will be announcing upcoming shows on my website. My next show will actually be Septemberfest at the Museum of the Southwest in Midland, Texas on September 7th – 9th. My jewelry is featured at Hempton’s Retro Threads in Austin, and The Wardrobe in Lakeway. Finally, I’m on Instagram and Facebook, too.”
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