Debra Sindt is a Colorado based artist who specializes in wildlife and western oil paintings. Her intimate knowledge of her subjects enables her to capture the look, the emotions, and the personality of her subjects in a way that makes her art truly captivating.
In her striking wildlife paintings, the first thing you notice is the eyes. There, a compelling sense of the animal’s individual personality and emotion is powerfully expressed. Then your gaze is drawn to the creature’s bearing and stance, its quiet alertness, its interaction with others. It all tells a story, set within the gorgeous hues and soft-focus surroundings of the animal’s natural world.
Raised on an Iowa farm, Debra remembers countless hours wandering and exploring on horseback or foot through pastures, woods, and creek-side trails. She encountered and observed many forms of wildlife. By the time she was six, a sketchpad was her constant companion. She also cared for orphaned or injured animals like lambs, foals, kittens, baby raccoons, ducks, and geese.
“There’s hardly a childhood memory that doesn’t involve caring for or drawing animals.”
Debra Sindt
In high school she took every art class and found herself drawn to oil paints. She says she knew immediately that oil was the perfect way to express her connection to the world she loves. She began receiving commissions and selling paintings. But marriage, children, and family business intervened, and it was years before she returned to art.
In 2000, the family settled in Colorado, giving her access to the magnificent wildlife of the Rocky Mountain West. When her youngest child left home, her passion returned. She studied with acclaimed artists including Kay Witherspoon and a mentorship with Jay Moore. Within a year her work was juried into national shows. By the second year she won a Best of Show award and gained gallery representation, with her first paintings selling within weeks.
Today her home and studio in the mountain foothills are surrounded by aspens and pines, visited frequently by mule deer, elk, coyote, fox, and occasionally moose. Within a ten minute drive she can reach bighorn sheep habitat. Her early works focused on close-up wildlife portraits capturing the animal’s essence in its eyes. Recently she has begun incorporating more landscape into her art. Her time at the easel is joyous, her brush moving quickly and effortlessly. It never feels like work, she says. It just pours out of her heart.
What makes Debra Sindt’s wildlife paintings so captivating?
The first thing you notice is the eyes, where the animal’s personality and emotion are powerfully expressed. Then you see the creature’s bearing and stance, telling a story within the gorgeous hues of its natural world.
How did Debra Sindt’s childhood influence her art?
Raised on an Iowa farm, she spent countless hours exploring on horseback or foot, observing wildlife and caring for orphaned animals. By age six, a sketchpad was her constant companion, and those early experiences shaped her lifelong connection to animals.
When did Debra Sindt return to painting full time?
After years away due to marriage, children, and family business, she returned when her youngest child left home. In 2000 the family moved to Colorado, and she began studying with acclaimed artists, quickly gaining national recognition and gallery representation.
Debra Sindt cared for orphaned and injured animals as a child, including lambs, foals, kittens, baby raccoons, ducks, and geese, and she says hardly a childhood memory exists without caring for or drawing animals.
