DEBORAH McALLISTER Cottonwood, Arizona
Deborah McAllister has been creating art since childhood and decided by the age of 13 that she wanted to be a professional artist. After high school she attended the Colorado Institute of Art and then worked in graphic design and illustration before pursuing a fine art career. Inspired by the landscape, she especially enjoys traveling and plein air painting. In 2019, Deborah and her husband sold their house in Colorado and started a life of travel in an RV, eventually settling in Cottonwood, Arizona, but still spending months on the road exploring new landscapes. Deborah has exhibited with Women Artists of the West and Oil Painters of America, and is represented by Zen Mountain Gallery (Cottonwood), Rijks Gallery (Crested Butte), and Mary Williams Fine Arts (Boulder).
I was very excited to have the opportunity to paint and photograph the Grand Canyon in 2021. I painted at the canyon for more than two weeks during spring and fall, which gave me the experience of seeing different lighting conditions from many vantage points. After gaining familiarity with the light and shapes in person, I felt up to tackling a larger painting from photo reference. What I was trying to capture in this painting was the feeling of distance in the layers of the canyon at the end of the day and the drama of the evening sky and its effect on the cliffs.
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