Biography & Statement  

Karyn DeBont paints each morning before going to work as landscape designer at New Mexico Tech in Socorro.  Anyone who has visited the campus has already seen Karyn's canvas.  She has been a landscape designer for nearly 30 years, but turned to painting 10 years ago to fulfill a lifetime interest in fine art.

Karyn has tapped into a resource largely undiscovered by New Mexico artists - the beauty and inspiration of south-central New Mexico.  She has found many painting locations in the Socorro area, and a regionalism has begun to emerge.  After years of studio work, Karyn shifted to painting  en plein air, and describes the experience this way:  "When you paint outdoors, there is something special that shows up in your work.  There is an immediacy - you have to get it down before the light changes.  First there is a settling-in period, then hours can pass before you are aware of it.  Interesting things happen out there."

Karyn has taken classes and workshops with several southwest artists, including Barry McCuan, Bill Gallen, and Waid Griffin.  She is a member of Plein Air Painters of New Mexico, Socorro County Arts, and the Rio Grande Art Association.   

"As a child growing up in rural Iowa, I spent most of my waking hours out-of-doors. But you grow up, and you disconnect. Painting helps me reconnect to the natural world, and reminds me to see the beauty in everyday views which are there for all of us, if we only look."