Artist shares Afghani heritage in 'Azra' series at Phillips Studio

Deborah Quynn shares her “Azra” paintings series and her joyful animal paintings at a new exhibit titled “Awakening” at Phillips Studio & Art Gallery. Meet the artist at the gallery’s First Friday, June 3, from 5 to 7 p.m.

Quynn’s feelings of how her ancestors survived living in the mountains of Afghanistan has impacted the color and design of her Azra oil painting series.These designs and colors reflect how she grew up and are like the weaving, knitting, tapestry and felting she was taught by her mother and grandmother.

Quynn was born in Iran to immigrant Afghani parents. Her parents had escaped the communist Russian invasion of Afghanistan. As a woman in Afghanistan, she had no voice or freedom. She could only imagine being an artist. She is very happy and grateful to be an American now and lives, works, and paints from her small farm in the Flathead Valley.

“It is my home where I belong, where I can paint and dream,” Quynn said.

Along with farm life and painting, Quynn works from home with Reload Love, a nonprofit organization that provides emergency relief to orphans and widows, helping to manage a group of widows and orphans who have lost their husbands or parents due to war or Covid-19, supporting them emotionally and working with older orphans who are traumatized and struggle with day-to-day life. She recently was able to find books for the older girls who are unable to go to school now due to the new authority that governs that country. She gets notifications about runaway young girls who have escaped arranged marriages and young widows with children seeking help.

“Because of Reload Love’s love for the orphans, I am able to reach these kids and encourage them to stay strong, continue their education, and not let anything stop them from dreaming big” Quynn said.

Quynn donated one of her paintings, “The Risen Hope” to aid in the rescue and evacuation of the Afghan women’s soccer team during the evacuation of that country during the regime change, working with Deliver Fund during the evacuation. Her painting realized an auction price of $15,000.

Quynn’s animal painting series is meant to inspire joy. She studies the animal’s behavior and movement, then captures the animal’s essence and personality on her canvas.

Phillips Studio & Gallery is located in the Kalispell Center Mall. The “Awakening” exhibit will be on view through June 25 at the gallery. Gallery hours are Wednesday to Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Call 406-309-2335 for more information.