FEATURED ARTIST - DEBRA LINKER

WELCOME DEBRA LINKER...

To learn more about Debra, and her thoughts and feelings on being an artist, read below.

I am an acrylic artist, living in the Seattle, WA, USA area. After 20 wonderful career years in high-tech senior management, I left corporate life, obtained a real estate license, and began painting - first as a hobby, and then as a passion, and now as a full, fledged artist. If I am not painting enough, I don't feel whole.

My work is often vibrant, full of color, and ranges through a variety of "styles" and subjects. I have been featured in NW galleries/retail stores and love hosting art shows. Along with painting, I spend a great deal of time mentoring others to help them find their creative consciousness and voice.

What led you to start creating your art?
A mentor suggested that, I "paint". I had no previous experience and no KNOWN desire.I followed the advice - picked up a paint brush - and haven't looked back.I've been painting a couple of years and have no formal training at all. (Ipreviously made art quilts, and did some basic knitting and crocheting butwas not at all interested in "crafts").
How did you decide what medium you wanted to work with?
I browsed art supplies until a medium "jumped out" at me. I knew absolutely nothing about the differences between oil and acrylic and pastel. I landed with Acrylic paint - and have learned to use the paint in ways that surprise my oil painting friends!

What aspect of creating do you find the most enjoyable?
I find the most enjoyment out of sitting in front of a blank canvas,asking it what it wants to be, getting my mind quiet and waiting for inspiration. Next - it is the feel of paint on the brush - the weight of the brush in my hand. Then - the feel of the paint gliding across the canvas, and the brush in my fingers as I scumble and scrub and dab. I also love the experience of receiving my high resolution scans on CD and opening the digital image of my painting on my computer and seeing it as if it were someone else's creation. The "WOW! *I* DID THAT!!". Nothing is more rewarding .... Oh except when someone else has the "WOW" expression when they see my art. What do I love the MOST? All of it. painting, thinking about painting, talking about painting,.. painting in my sleep. When I am not painting - I am not whole.

What message, if any, do you want to convey with your art?
The message in my art is simple: LIVE IN FULL COLOR !!

What advice do you have for other artists?
Find a way to turn off the cruel internal critic who tells you, “you can't"; that your work sucks; that you should get a real job; that no one is going to buy your art; that you are a fraud. Find a way to rise above that judgmental voice in your head and get to an inner place where it does not matter what the outcome is - the joy is in the creating. (Later - you can focus on the "business" aspect of your art...but while you are creating - just CREATE without judgment, fear, or worry about money). The best advice I ever received was to read (and do the exercises) in Julia Cameron's The Artist Way. I'd like to pass that bit of advice onto every artist.

Debra's art may be viewed by clicking on the links below:

DEBRA LINKER WEB PAGE
DEBRA'S ETSY SHOP
DEBRA'S BLOG