Building a Body of Work with Debbie Mackenzie

In this episode, I’m joined by landscape painter Debbie Mackenzie, who lives and works on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula. Debbie shares how her paintings grow out of the places she spends time in, and how her ideas evolve naturally as she works toward a solo exhibition.

We talk about what it means to build a body of work rather than individual paintings, and how each piece can influence the next. Debbie explains her unusual process of photographing inspiration and then never looking at the images again, relying instead on memory and feeling to guide her compositions.

We also get into the realities behind the scenes; logistics, deadlines, long studio days, balancing family life, financial gaps between shows, and the emotional comedown that can happen after finishing a major series. Debbie also reflects on consistency, why she rarely changes her palette, and how small shifts like music or brushes can spark experimentation without disrupting cohesion.

You can find Debbie on instagram here, her website here: www.debbiemackenzieart.com

She is represented by

SYDNEY - Michael Reid Gallery - Southern Highlands & Michael Reid Northern Beaches

MELBOURNE - Kelli Lundberg Gallery

You can find the podcast here on Instagram & here on substack

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