December 6, 2024 • 13 mins
Discover the transformative journey of Deborah Markle, a talented contemporary abstract artist who found renewed passion for painting following a personal loss. Join us as Deb, affectionately known as Deb or Debbie, opens up about her creative evolution from a hobbyist to an exhibiting artist. With an art degree and a background in photography, Deb brings a unique eye for composition and color to her distinctive works, which she lovingly refers to as "wall jewelry." Uncover why she prefers acrylics for their ease of use and hear about her inventive application of metallics and vibrant color schemes, all while navigating the challenges of showcasing her art and overcoming creative blocks.
Be inspired by Deb's December exhibition and get a sneak peek into the motivation behind her mesmerizing pieces. We discuss the excitement of experiencing art up close and the invaluable opportunity of being present with an artist at work. As we express our gratitude for Deb's involvement with the Canton Artists League and her first solo show, which features a stunning array of large and small canvases, we invite you to explore more of her striking works on Instagram. Join us for a captivating conversation that promises to leave you eager to immerse yourself in Deb's dynamic artistic world.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
I'm so excited to be back with a new episode,
brutally Made, and this month isDecember and my exhibiting
artist at the studio is MissDebra Markle.
So, deb, thank you for joiningme today on the podcast.
Thank you for having me.
Awesome.
I am really excited foreveryone to see your work in
(00:29):
person.
So, on the visual portion, ifyou're watching on YouTube,
you'll see some imagery of Deb'swork in a slideshow and I would
love for you, deb, to introduceyourself and just give us some
basic information about you.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
All righty, my name is Deborah Markle, but I prefer
Deb or Debbie, nothing so formal.
I'm a contemporary abstractartist and I paint with acrylics
.
It's a hobby, not a business,and I call it, lovingly, wall
jewelry.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
Yes, lovingly walled jewelry.
Yes, so that is something that,if you do find the links in the
show notes that I will linkDeb's Instagram account so
everyone can see that and followher on there.
And how long have you been anartist?
I know you said this is not abusiness, it's truly, really
from your heart and a hobby, butyou do have an art degree, is
(01:25):
that?
Speaker 2 (01:25):
right, I do, and I started loving art as early as
kindergarten.
I always took art in middleschool, high school and then
went on to major in art.
At college.
I took every class that wasrelated to art, except painting,
because an empty canvasterrified me and my dad would
always ask me to paint him apicture and I'd tell him no,
(01:47):
that's not my thing, dad.
And when he passed in 218, Istarted painting.
So better late than never.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
That's right.
Oh, my goodness, wow.
So I love the direction thatyour pieces take.
They're such a dynamic use ofcolor and movement, and I would
love to know, when you startedto dive into painting since it
wasn't really like your fortefrom the beginning in college
(02:16):
what made you pick acrylics?
Speaker 2 (02:18):
Well, I knew that oil took longer to dry.
It was more for a really goodtechnician, and since I was
clueless, I thought let's startwith the basics, let's go easy
and that's it's stuck.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
Yeah yeah, I love your use of metallics in your in
a lot of your pieces.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
It's not all it is in most of them.
Actually, when I was in college, my major was in photography,
so that was my medium at thetime and I had this eye for
composition.
That was unusual and my photosweren't really anything but
repetition, color andcomposition.
People would say what exactlyis that a picture of?
(03:04):
But anyway, my, my paintingcurrently is about color,
composition and sometimesrepetition, so I really didn't
stray far from my early art form.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
I love how you've taken that and put it into paint
.
That's wonderful.
That's.
That's such a signature look,and I don't know that I've ever
seen any of your photography, sowe may have to like get
together and see some of that.
If you still have any, I wouldlove to explore that too.
That's wonderful.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
Oh, that was a long time ago.
Yeah, that ended decades ago.
There's not much of that left.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
So how do you find your inspiration for your pieces
now?
Speaker 2 (03:41):
Okay well, I look for strange or weird color schemes
anywhere in nature, magazines,grocery stores, wherever, yeah,
forever, sometimes just lots ofpaint in my store laying around
or color chips from a paintstore.
My husband dave, he frames, Istretch my own canvases.
(04:04):
Those are the big ones, not thelittle ones.
Okay, yeah, and I just I pickmy colors, I start squeezing
them on the canvas and then it'sup to the powers that be and
they make my arms start toproduce what that painting will
be.
It really takes on a life ofits own.
I'm not trying to soundmystical or spiritual or
(04:24):
anything, but I really have aplan when I start and if there
is one, it changes somewhat as Igo.
As I said, it paints itself andI've tried to reproduce a
painting, but I can't.
It's like a one-time deal.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
Yeah, yeah, that's hard, it's hard.
You know we're notmanufacturers.
As artists, I feel like it'sreally difficult to do something
you know multiple times, soit's right.
So what's been your biggestchallenge as an artist?
So what's?
Speaker 2 (04:56):
been your biggest challenge as an artist.
Getting my art out there to beseen has been a real challenge.
Luckily, I belong to CantonArtists League and they have
helped us to find shows to applyfor, because some of them are
juried.
My other challenges are, if Ihit a dry spell, you know,
(05:17):
trying to work through that.
You know, like writer's block,yeah, um, but they don't usually
last too long.
So, like I came home from myreception the other day and I
started another paint, finishedit this morning.
Speaker 1 (05:30):
Oh, that's wow, that's fast, that's incredible.
Oh my goodness.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
It is um, it is new on Instagram, so if you go to my
page it's the latest one on thefeed.
Speaker 1 (05:42):
Oh, I'm so glad that you've posted something new, so
that's wonderful, and I knowthat this is your first solo
show and it is phenomenal, it isbeautiful, it fills the wall
top to bottom.
And then there are somebeautiful, um, smaller canvases
that are available for sale.
You know, in conjunction withthe larger pieces that are for
(06:04):
sale, are there any other placesthat you offer your work?
Uh, is it available anywhereelse?
Speaker 2 (06:12):
well, I show it on instagram um, you know really
prices or anything, just sopeople can see it.
And then I, you know, if I'mlucky enough to get into a show
and I'm chosen to be in one, youknow that's.
That's a good way, you know, tobe seen.
And also at Brutifly.
(06:33):
The only limit I had was howmany I could squeeze into that
space, and that that is such ablessing.
I'm so grateful for that.
Now there'll be anotheropportunity that I have, similar
to this one in May of 25.
And it's at the awe gallery inlewisville um may 2025.
(06:57):
I'll be the featured artist thatmonth oh, I love that.
I'm so excited about that onetoo, although it's not as well,
I won't say anything, um, but Ialso have some canvases on
display at harrison paint onwhipple, because I used to work
there and those people knew thatI painted and they always let
(07:17):
me bring canvases in there, sothere's some there currently.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
I didn't know that.
That's wonderful to hear that.
I will make sure I put theinstructions for the directions
for both of those locations inthe show notes to help promote
where those are.
Oh my goodness, I had no idea.
And congrats on the solo showin May in Louisville.
Oh my goodness, what anothergreat little community to visit
(07:42):
and are really doing a lot ofthings for art.
So I love hearing that.
Gosh, is there anything elseyou want to talk about your
inspiration or with your art orthe direction, like why you
chose abstract art?
Speaker 2 (07:56):
Well, that's a good question.
Actually, it worked out thatway because of the color and the
composition and whatnot.
But as far as trying to bephotorealistic and being what
they call a good artist, I didall of that and being what they
call a good artist, I did all ofthat.
I mean, I used to drawvoraciously and I took art
(08:17):
lessons and then in college Itook everything in sculpture and
I did it all.
But there's just somethingabout abstract that's very
freeing and you can just gocrazy and have color and I go
for the wow factor.
Speaker 1 (08:33):
Yeah, yeah, and you can tell that because the size
and the glimmer of the metallicand the color compositions that
you've put together, it is a wowfactor.
You can absolutely feel thatand there's such a connection
with your pieces.
I know my husband was pullingsome of the can canvases out of
the uh containers and reallyconnecting with those and that's
(08:56):
what I love seeing people inthe community, you know,
touching the art and seeing itand like connecting with it and
it's just wonderful.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
Thank you.
The smaller pieces is actuallyhow I got it got started and I I
wanted to make eight pieces,you know, a major pop of color
to put in a foyer or, you know,in an office or a loft or
something like that.
That's the direction it wentyeah, no great direction.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
I love knowing that.
So is there a best way someoneshould contact you if they're
interested in a piece thatthey're not local, or if they
hear the podcast and exploreyour Instagram?
Is there a method that's best?
Do you have a website or?
Speaker 2 (09:42):
anything, and I do have my little cards that I give
out.
They have my cell phone numberon them, and I can probably be
reached through a gallery thatdisplays my work too, but I
don't mind if people call mycell phone.
My cards are on all over yourwalls, so that's good.
Speaker 1 (10:04):
That's good.
I didn't know if you had awebsite that I didn't realize.
Speaker 2 (10:09):
Okay, I just wanted to make sure.
Okay.
Speaker 1 (10:16):
That's for businesses , not for hobbies, I understand,
and we'll leave the web.
We'll leave the phone numberlocal.
I'll make sure that that stayswith the card, but they can
definitely send you a message onInstagram if they're interested
.
Sure can.
Oh gosh, no, it's a beautifulshow, deb, you have so much to
be proud of.
I love how it looks on the walland it just stops people in
(10:37):
their tracks when they're comingin.
So congratulations on beingbrave and contacting me through
your friend who let you knowthat I had the space available
and you were, I mean, right overat the studio.
What the week I opened, I think.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
I don't remember when I came, but I know that Tom's
work was on the wall at the time.
Yeah, so, I was Johnny on thespot because I thought, oh, if I
get in there early enough,maybe she'll have room for me in
the next three years.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
I'm glad you got in this year because, yes, it is
filling up.
I'm, I've got a couple artiststhat wrote this morning and want
to exhibit photography andsculpture and that's going to
put me going into September.
I'm just my I'm, my mind isblown.
So I'm yeah, yeah.
But thank you again forexhibiting and for joining me on
(11:32):
the podcast.
I'm anxious for everyone to seeall your pieces in the
slideshow and your, your work isavailable until the end of
December.
Again, all the artists.
They receive 100%.
I take no commission.
It is all going back to theartists, because I really want
to offer different ways.
People can, you know, make aliving off of their art and I
(11:55):
feel like that is just a callingthat I have with this space and
that's what I'm doing, and I'mstill going to try to talk you
into teaching a class.
Speaker 2 (12:03):
You know what that's funny.
My daughter and my husband areboth hammering on me and saying
you know, you could just teachsome little class.
I'm not a teacher.
And then a coworker of mydaughter said I saw your mom's
stuff on Instagram.
It's beautiful.
Is she ever going to teach aclass?
So yeah, I probably will.
Speaker 1 (12:25):
I'm glad.
Well, everyone, stay tuned.
We will definitely post thatevent and you can attend.
And yeah, I think, if you'rejust up there painting and
letting people follow you along,just look at it that way.
We're just being inspired byyou and I just, you know,
getting to be in your presencewhile you do it, that's more
than half the battle.
So hang in there.
I think you should do it.
(12:45):
Okay, well, we'll give it somethought.
Thanks, deb, for being on theshow, and I can't wait for
everyone to come into the studioand see your piece.
So thank you again for beingthe exhibiting artist for
December.
Speaker 2 (13:01):
Thank you, tracy.
Thank you for the opportunity.
I really appreciate it.
You're welcome, bye-bye,bye-bye.
I'm so excited to be back with a new episode,
brutally Made, and this month isDecember and my exhibiting
artist at the studio is MissDebra Markle.
So, deb, thank you for joiningme today on the podcast.
Thank you for having me.
Awesome.
I am really excited foreveryone to see your work in
(00:29):
person.
So, on the visual portion, ifyou're watching on YouTube,
you'll see some imagery of Deb'swork in a slideshow and I would
love for you, deb, to introduceyourself and just give us some
basic information about you.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
All righty, my name is Deborah Markle, but I prefer
Deb or Debbie, nothing so formal.
I'm a contemporary abstractartist and I paint with acrylics
.
It's a hobby, not a business,and I call it, lovingly, wall
jewelry.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
Yes, lovingly walled jewelry.
Yes, so that is something that,if you do find the links in the
show notes that I will linkDeb's Instagram account so
everyone can see that and followher on there.
And how long have you been anartist?
I know you said this is not abusiness, it's truly, really
from your heart and a hobby, butyou do have an art degree, is
(01:25):
that?
Speaker 2 (01:25):
right, I do, and I started loving art as early as
kindergarten.
I always took art in middleschool, high school and then
went on to major in art.
At college.
I took every class that wasrelated to art, except painting,
because an empty canvasterrified me and my dad would
always ask me to paint him apicture and I'd tell him no,
(01:47):
that's not my thing, dad.
And when he passed in 218, Istarted painting.
So better late than never.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
That's right.
Oh, my goodness, wow.
So I love the direction thatyour pieces take.
They're such a dynamic use ofcolor and movement, and I would
love to know, when you startedto dive into painting since it
wasn't really like your fortefrom the beginning in college
(02:16):
what made you pick acrylics?
Speaker 2 (02:18):
Well, I knew that oil took longer to dry.
It was more for a really goodtechnician, and since I was
clueless, I thought let's startwith the basics, let's go easy
and that's it's stuck.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
Yeah yeah, I love your use of metallics in your in
a lot of your pieces.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
It's not all it is in most of them.
Actually, when I was in college, my major was in photography,
so that was my medium at thetime and I had this eye for
composition.
That was unusual and my photosweren't really anything but
repetition, color andcomposition.
People would say what exactlyis that a picture of?
(03:04):
But anyway, my, my paintingcurrently is about color,
composition and sometimesrepetition, so I really didn't
stray far from my early art form.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
I love how you've taken that and put it into paint
.
That's wonderful.
That's.
That's such a signature look,and I don't know that I've ever
seen any of your photography, sowe may have to like get
together and see some of that.
If you still have any, I wouldlove to explore that too.
That's wonderful.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
Oh, that was a long time ago.
Yeah, that ended decades ago.
There's not much of that left.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
So how do you find your inspiration for your pieces
now?
Speaker 2 (03:41):
Okay well, I look for strange or weird color schemes
anywhere in nature, magazines,grocery stores, wherever, yeah,
forever, sometimes just lots ofpaint in my store laying around
or color chips from a paintstore.
My husband dave, he frames, Istretch my own canvases.
(04:04):
Those are the big ones, not thelittle ones.
Okay, yeah, and I just I pickmy colors, I start squeezing
them on the canvas and then it'sup to the powers that be and
they make my arms start toproduce what that painting will
be.
It really takes on a life ofits own.
I'm not trying to soundmystical or spiritual or
(04:24):
anything, but I really have aplan when I start and if there
is one, it changes somewhat as Igo.
As I said, it paints itself andI've tried to reproduce a
painting, but I can't.
It's like a one-time deal.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
Yeah, yeah, that's hard, it's hard.
You know we're notmanufacturers.
As artists, I feel like it'sreally difficult to do something
you know multiple times, soit's right.
So what's been your biggestchallenge as an artist?
So what's?
Speaker 2 (04:56):
been your biggest challenge as an artist.
Getting my art out there to beseen has been a real challenge.
Luckily, I belong to CantonArtists League and they have
helped us to find shows to applyfor, because some of them are
juried.
My other challenges are, if Ihit a dry spell, you know,
(05:17):
trying to work through that.
You know, like writer's block,yeah, um, but they don't usually
last too long.
So, like I came home from myreception the other day and I
started another paint, finishedit this morning.
Speaker 1 (05:30):
Oh, that's wow, that's fast, that's incredible.
Oh my goodness.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
It is um, it is new on Instagram, so if you go to my
page it's the latest one on thefeed.
Speaker 1 (05:42):
Oh, I'm so glad that you've posted something new, so
that's wonderful, and I knowthat this is your first solo
show and it is phenomenal, it isbeautiful, it fills the wall
top to bottom.
And then there are somebeautiful, um, smaller canvases
that are available for sale.
You know, in conjunction withthe larger pieces that are for
(06:04):
sale, are there any other placesthat you offer your work?
Uh, is it available anywhereelse?
Speaker 2 (06:12):
well, I show it on instagram um, you know really
prices or anything, just sopeople can see it.
And then I, you know, if I'mlucky enough to get into a show
and I'm chosen to be in one, youknow that's.
That's a good way, you know, tobe seen.
And also at Brutifly.
(06:33):
The only limit I had was howmany I could squeeze into that
space, and that that is such ablessing.
I'm so grateful for that.
Now there'll be anotheropportunity that I have, similar
to this one in May of 25.
And it's at the awe gallery inlewisville um may 2025.
(06:57):
I'll be the featured artist thatmonth oh, I love that.
I'm so excited about that onetoo, although it's not as well,
I won't say anything, um, but Ialso have some canvases on
display at harrison paint onwhipple, because I used to work
there and those people knew thatI painted and they always let
(07:17):
me bring canvases in there, sothere's some there currently.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
I didn't know that.
That's wonderful to hear that.
I will make sure I put theinstructions for the directions
for both of those locations inthe show notes to help promote
where those are.
Oh my goodness, I had no idea.
And congrats on the solo showin May in Louisville.
Oh my goodness, what anothergreat little community to visit
(07:42):
and are really doing a lot ofthings for art.
So I love hearing that.
Gosh, is there anything elseyou want to talk about your
inspiration or with your art orthe direction, like why you
chose abstract art?
Speaker 2 (07:56):
Well, that's a good question.
Actually, it worked out thatway because of the color and the
composition and whatnot.
But as far as trying to bephotorealistic and being what
they call a good artist, I didall of that and being what they
call a good artist, I did all ofthat.
I mean, I used to drawvoraciously and I took art
(08:17):
lessons and then in college Itook everything in sculpture and
I did it all.
But there's just somethingabout abstract that's very
freeing and you can just gocrazy and have color and I go
for the wow factor.
Speaker 1 (08:33):
Yeah, yeah, and you can tell that because the size
and the glimmer of the metallicand the color compositions that
you've put together, it is a wowfactor.
You can absolutely feel thatand there's such a connection
with your pieces.
I know my husband was pullingsome of the can canvases out of
the uh containers and reallyconnecting with those and that's
(08:56):
what I love seeing people inthe community, you know,
touching the art and seeing itand like connecting with it and
it's just wonderful.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
Thank you.
The smaller pieces is actuallyhow I got it got started and I I
wanted to make eight pieces,you know, a major pop of color
to put in a foyer or, you know,in an office or a loft or
something like that.
That's the direction it wentyeah, no great direction.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
I love knowing that.
So is there a best way someoneshould contact you if they're
interested in a piece thatthey're not local, or if they
hear the podcast and exploreyour Instagram?
Is there a method that's best?
Do you have a website or?
Speaker 2 (09:42):
anything, and I do have my little cards that I give
out.
They have my cell phone numberon them, and I can probably be
reached through a gallery thatdisplays my work too, but I
don't mind if people call mycell phone.
My cards are on all over yourwalls, so that's good.
Speaker 1 (10:04):
That's good.
I didn't know if you had awebsite that I didn't realize.
Speaker 2 (10:09):
Okay, I just wanted to make sure.
Okay.
Speaker 1 (10:16):
That's for businesses , not for hobbies, I understand,
and we'll leave the web.
We'll leave the phone numberlocal.
I'll make sure that that stayswith the card, but they can
definitely send you a message onInstagram if they're interested
.
Sure can.
Oh gosh, no, it's a beautifulshow, deb, you have so much to
be proud of.
I love how it looks on the walland it just stops people in
(10:37):
their tracks when they're comingin.
So congratulations on beingbrave and contacting me through
your friend who let you knowthat I had the space available
and you were, I mean, right overat the studio.
What the week I opened, I think.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
I don't remember when I came, but I know that Tom's
work was on the wall at the time.
Yeah, so, I was Johnny on thespot because I thought, oh, if I
get in there early enough,maybe she'll have room for me in
the next three years.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
I'm glad you got in this year because, yes, it is
filling up.
I'm, I've got a couple artiststhat wrote this morning and want
to exhibit photography andsculpture and that's going to
put me going into September.
I'm just my I'm, my mind isblown.
So I'm yeah, yeah.
But thank you again forexhibiting and for joining me on
(11:32):
the podcast.
I'm anxious for everyone to seeall your pieces in the
slideshow and your, your work isavailable until the end of
December.
Again, all the artists.
They receive 100%.
I take no commission.
It is all going back to theartists, because I really want
to offer different ways.
People can, you know, make aliving off of their art and I
(11:55):
feel like that is just a callingthat I have with this space and
that's what I'm doing, and I'mstill going to try to talk you
into teaching a class.
Speaker 2 (12:03):
You know what that's funny.
My daughter and my husband areboth hammering on me and saying
you know, you could just teachsome little class.
I'm not a teacher.
And then a coworker of mydaughter said I saw your mom's
stuff on Instagram.
It's beautiful.
Is she ever going to teach aclass?
So yeah, I probably will.
Speaker 1 (12:25):
I'm glad.
Well, everyone, stay tuned.
We will definitely post thatevent and you can attend.
And yeah, I think, if you'rejust up there painting and
letting people follow you along,just look at it that way.
We're just being inspired byyou and I just, you know,
getting to be in your presencewhile you do it, that's more
than half the battle.
So hang in there.
I think you should do it.
(12:45):
Okay, well, we'll give it somethought.
Thanks, deb, for being on theshow, and I can't wait for
everyone to come into the studioand see your piece.
So thank you again for beingthe exhibiting artist for
December.
Speaker 2 (13:01):
Thank you, tracy.
Thank you for the opportunity.
I really appreciate it.
You're welcome, bye-bye,bye-bye.
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