From early July to early August of 2019, I was Artist in Residence at the Flathead Lake Biological Station. Flathead Lake is one of the deepest, cleanest lakes in the United States, and it is a miracle of beauty and clarity. Looking over the side of a kayak on its crystalline surface, it seemed to me that the boulders a hundred feet below were near enough to bang the hull.
I spent an exciting month living in a sweet cabin on its shores, painting the lake and surrounding mountains and river valleys. I dodged bears, watched eagles and merlins swoop over the pines, and talked with biologists about everything from the mating dances of spiders to the geology of Flathead Lake’s multi-colored stones.
Here are a few paintings from that residency. Some are pastel, some are oil on unstretched canvas. A few are available for purchase, so please contact me if you’d like more information. Thank you for looking!
“Finlay Camp” plein air oil on unstretched canvas 8 x 11 
“Ponderosa, Flathead Lake” plein air oil on unstretched canvas 12 3/4 x 8 
“Ocean Spray, Flathead Lake” plein air oil on unstretched canvas 8 x 11 1/2 
“Swan River Bend” oil on unstretched canvas 10 3/4 x 7 3/4 
“Yellow Bay Light, Flathead Lake” plein air oil on unstretched canvas 7 x 9 
“Echo Lake Sandbar” plein air pastel on sanded paper, 12 3/4 x 10
Drawing The Motmot 
gorgeous!! Joe Howton MD
Thanks, Joe!
Great stuff Debby! Thanks! What’s next for you?
Thanks for asking, brianbari! I’m on several new kicks, one of painting clouds over water, another one being making field sketches of our neighborhood Mississippi kites, and I think I’m getting back to keeping a nature journal. Please stay tuned!
So happy to see you are back posting your beautiful paintings again. Back in the stone age, I use to live in Oklahoma City and painted with a group at the Geathes Art Studio, which by the way, was a former grocery store. Dick and Edith Getz rented it and turned it into an art studio and taught classes there until they moved to New York. Then Mary Geathes took it over. After her death the students took it over and they are still painting there Tuesday evening and Saturday mornings. Ted Majak is the teacher now.
My old mind recalls you use to live in Oklahoma too. I have always loved your bird paintings. I have travel all over the world painting but I got old and I now live with my oldest daughter in Charlotte NC and my painting juices are now dormant! Thanks for sharing. Marie Turner
So happy to hear from you, Marie. I still live in Oklahoma and I’ve painted and sketched at Geatches (sp?) studio in the past. Ted is an old friend. I’ll post more paintings soon, as well as sketches. Thanks for the kind note, and happy painting to you!
These are so nice. I’m glad to see you posting paintings again.