ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES - DEBBIE COOPER

Being raised in and spending 25 years in Hawaii, Debbie Cooper’s heart has always been somewhere on a tropical island.

Graduating from high school in Honolulu, Cooper moved to Maui for 18 years, where she graduated from college with an Associate of Arts degree and went on to become an award-winning photographer, and owner/operator of a beauty salon in Hawaii. Specializing in old Hawaiiana, she produced a line of greeting cards with verse in the Hawaiian language, which were introduced at The Bishop Museum in Honolulu.

In 1990 Cooper left Hawaii with her two small sons to relocate in Whitefish, Montana. Although she was within miles of Glacier National Park, Cooper felt like a fish out of water in this environment.

She met her husband Bruce in 1998. They soon married and began to take extended trips to Belize several times a year. Cooper was captivated by the Garifuna women and soon started to paint, thus enabling her to return to where her heart has always been. She now calls Caye Caulker home.

Cooper loves art because "it is not repetitive. Each painting is new and different. People always tell me my art makes them happy. It’s all in the color!" Cooper says her colors bring back memories of trips to the Caribbean, and inspire people to talk about their Caribbean journeys with her.

Her art is sold throughout the country, showing in galleries in Montana, California and Belize. When asked if she had prominent collectors, Cooper replied, "Jimmy Buffet loves it!".