Celebrating Creativity: Gabriola Island Studio Tour 2025

Deb & Deb together at Deb Dallyn’s open studio, October 2025

I had the joy of visiting many wonderful studios open during this year’s Gabriola Island Studio Tour 2025.

Every Thanksgiving weekend, our island comes alive with color, creativity, and connection as over 60 artists open their doors, sharing their processes and stories with visitors from near and far.

This year, one of my favourite artists to visit was assemblage artist Deborah Dallyn, whose work defies easy categorization.

Her art is at once playful, profound, and deeply human—each piece revealing the poetry in found materials thoughtfully transformed into sculpture. There’s something whimsical yet timeless in her creative voice that truly resonates with me.

Deb Dallyn standing beside my favourite Piece of hers.

My favourite artwork on display this year was a framed white circular piece combining paint, rocks, and wood—absolutely gorgeous. (See above photo.)

I also loved her moving flag installation—a kinetic larger scale work full of movement and spirit—and her tall, colorful wooden sculpture inscribed “A True Radical Makes Hope Possible” (see below), standing proudly over five feet tall. Fantastic!

Beyond her studio, Deborah is also the creator of the acclaimed public art installation Rite of Passage, located here on Gabriola Island. You can learn more about that project and her community contribution here.

If you’re interested in learning more about Deborah’s work or inquiring about collecting her art, I highly encourage you to connect with her directly through the Gabriola Arts Council Artist Directory.