Debbie Nijland

Debbie Nijland was born in Amsterdam in 1959 and grew up as the youngest child in a large working-class family in the Kinkerbuurt, where she visited the Stedelijk and Rijksmuseum regularly with her school and mother. In 1974 her family moved to Brabant. After taking fashion drawing courses in the late seventies, she began lessons at a cultural center in 1993 and continued studying various techniques with different teachers three to four times a week for sixteen years. In 2008 she enrolled at Kunstacademie IKO Hoogstraten, completing a five-year degree in painting in 2012.

Her work focuses primarily on paint itself and employs a monumental, expressionistic approach. Since 2008 she has concentrated increasingly on social themes, working in series and often painting over underlying images to reveal harsh aspects of life. She favors strong lighting and contrasts, working in various proportions and developing compositions directly. Her paintings are large-scale works marked by generous use of color and deliberate brushwork.

Nijland views art as something that may provoke, raise questions, spark discussion, and contain humor. Her work draws inspiration from Francisco Goya, James Ensor, Peter Paul Rubens, Johannes Grützke, Per Kirkeby, Neo Rauch, and Pablo Picasso. In 2018 the Stadsgalerij Breda held an overview exhibition celebrating her work.