Amy Dixon Fine Art - Blog

JUST OFF THE EASEL, volume 4

Amy Dixon — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 17:41:00 GMT

Cocktails 1961, 24x24, Amy Dixon

JUST OFF THE EASEL, volume III

Amy Dixon — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 18:58:00 GMT

Inspired by the private wine cellar of a friend in Beaune, France.

WINE DREAMS, 30X24

Donated to the Vintner's Reception and Live Auction

HIGH MUSEUM ATLANTA WINE AUCTION

Saturday, March 26th

Artist will be present!

JUST OFF THE EASEL, volume 2

Amy Dixon — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 18:53:00 GMT

Blue Grass Cow, 36x36, Amy Dixon White Grass, Blue Cow, 30x30, Amy Dixon

Why cows? Form, structure, texture, something to say about color and freedom from form. Inspiration is all around, right in front of our eyes....just look!

WWW.AMYDIXONFINEART.COM

JUST OFF THE EASEL Volume I

Amy Dixon — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 18:49:00 GMT

Angels in the Aspens No. 2, 60x48, Amy Dixon

In the eyes of a 5 year old….

Well, art critiques, line up! Mollie, age five, has summed it all up in a recent comment to her mom.

“Mom, Amy Dixon is the best artist in the neighborhood. She can color inside the lines without going around the outside first. And she can draw perfect circles. And really good s’s”

Thanks Mollie! It made my day and makes me want to shine even more on the canvas for ALL ages who are taking note!

Twas The Week Before Christmas

Amy Dixon — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 19:10:00 GMT

Twas the week before Christmas and all through the shop,

I am still painting, but WISH to stop!

The paintings are hung on the walls with care,

And just as we hoped, the buyers were there.

Kirklyn taps away on the computer all day,

Then schleps a painting and whisks it away.

Kelly turned 50 and wouldn’t ya know,

It’s down hill now, I told her so!

When out on the block arose such a clatter,

I sprang from the easel to see what was the matter.

Away to the window only to find,

John Harrell as Santa, he’s one of a kind!

The moon on the breast of absolutely NO snow,

The Washington Park Grille is all aglow.

Kit and Anita still have brushes in hand,

We need inspiration, strike up the band!

The chaos won’t stop, the shopping’s not done,

Where are the elves? Son of a gun!

I need them right now, there’s stuff left to do,

3 last paintings, then buy a gift or 2?

Not one thing is wrapped, cuz nothing is bought

Power shopping ahead, before I’m distraught.

Meditation, they say, will calm us all down,

Not cuss in traffic all over town?

Nothing a little glass of cheer won’t cure,

Pace is the key, that’s for sure…

Enough of this poem, but you DID read this far….

What can I say, calling Onstar.

Happy Holidays to all & toast the New Year!

Thanks for reading my poem, silly and queer.

Traveling Moments

Amy Dixon — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 20:31:00 GMT

11.10.10 Traveling Moments

Still, 42x54…Fields are vast. Sky is blue, pink, mango, maze. Squalls move in and cloud visions, but in the mist is confusion followed by clarity.


Alerts a place of time that exists in the                           On the Horizon, 6x6 . . . A passing moment on the
now and draws from the past.                                           road that inspires.

Flowers linger in visceral palettes of nature. God’s grace uncovers what’s been there all along, yearning to be recognized and told.

Movements of my brush. Amy Dixon, 11.10.10

Food, Wine, Friends & ART!

Amy Dixon — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 20:40:00 GMT

Does anyone know of a better combination? I am a foodie for sure, and in my element when the food, wine and friends involve ART.

Recently, a commissioned painting combined all of the above. Oysters on the half shell, French champagne, new friends and voila, the makings of ART to tell the story! The main venue in Boulder was Jax, known for oysters and a lively bar. My storyboard for the painting combined photographs that I took of my clients at the bar, adding a suggestion of both of their dad’s in the crowd, a few existing elements ( the wire fish sculpture) as well as a few added elements that had special meaning & memories for them. Commissions of this nature are sometimes challenging, but the end result is worth the problem solving!

Champagne, Oysters, & Family 36x36 Winescapes Detail

Often, when working on a painting that is more representational, detailed in subject, tighter, I find it beneficial to work on a very loose piece at the same time. Something about the right brain, left brain, or perhaps I land somewhere in the middle. Winemaker’s Dozen (refer to my website) made me crazy, making sure one could tell which glass was on first, which was on second. This painting is part of the permanent collection of art in Grill 23 Restaurant, Boston. My new diptych, Winescapes I & II, is a different take on wine glasses, pushing to more abstraction. I like both and enjoyed painting both, but the approach is totally different. While working on the commissioned painting of the busy bar scene mentioned above, I worked on 2 panels, 48x36” each, as a diptych. Loose, drippy, scraping away paint, layers of glazing, abstracted wine glasses that go beyond just painting an object.

The subject is obvious, but the process is not. Layers of paint inspire me. Breaking the rules…what rules? Leaning towards greater abstraction and a direction I plan to continue exploring. Perhaps the viewing jury can decide the success. At the very least, I achieved an overall floating quality of a singular object rendered in a random &repetitive manner…which is what I set out to do. Construct & deconstruct.

Dolby Chadwick Gallery (www.dolbychadwickgallery.com) in San Francisco just opened an exquisite exhibition of works by Alex Kanevsky, whose paintings I have admired for years, but never had the opportunity to see in person. What a treat! Well worth the trip to San Francisco! ART that moved my soul. He is a master painter and creates his own language with transparent layers and building up of these brilliant layers on the surface. Pure abstraction, yet he paints a representational subject, often seeming to be a collage of many observations. Brilliant in my eyes! Check it out on their website. He’s a painters’ painter and that is to say INSPIRING! We, as painters, seek inspiration from old masters and often from contemporary painters too. On some level for me, Kanevsky’s work addressed both. The underlying draftsmanship is masterful, the surface: modern.

Time….always reconfiguring TIME for the vast ideas I have relative to creating art and expanding my career. Time…is a blank canvas, awaiting artistic truths. What do I really want to say with my art? How can I approach subjects that have interested me for years, and say it in a bold, new manner. Is it just that simple? Am I challenging myself enough? The little voice inside that whispers what if you venture off in another direction and it’s awful…..OR, what if it’s spectacular and launches art that reveals a new voice, a new level. I have to listen to that voice as it is mine and have the energy, courage & guts to not only carve out the time, but let my intuitive nudges move that paint on the canvas in new ways. It’s not a drastic leap of faith, rather a continuation of growing as an artist and not settling for just “ what works, what sells”, but further developing my own “lingo”, language of paint.

Lift your glass at Ya Ya’s ( Belleview in the Denver Tech Center) to the new triptych that I recently installed over the bar. The bottle is the managing partners’ choice, a Barolo, La Spinetta. www.yayasbistro.com YUM! The wine glasses are giclees on canvas and are a split version of the aforementioned Winemaker’s Dozen.

Stay tuned. My next blog may simply be musings of finding my language in a pile of paint, glaze, brushes, palette knifes. What I already do, just pushing in new directions.

Thanks Doc!

Amy Dixon — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 17:10:00 GMT

The summer has evaporated. Tis trite to say, but true. We all experience the slipping away of days on different levels and mine has been a roller coaster of highs and lows. Thankfully, it is mostly highs, but first the lows. My dad passed away July 10^th at the age of 86. I could write an entire blog celebrating the life of a skilled surgeon, a dad who was a “hero” to not only his family, but to many… The life of the party…” never let the truth stand in the way of a good story”!!! His ability to delve into creativity on any level is a gift that is a part of me and always will be. Salute to my dad, JT, Jack Tom, Daddy Jack and simply “Daddy”.

Just when you think you are hitting a stride…ahhhh…BALANCE…a boulder of emotions hit. Lucky me that I am able to channel the layers of life & all of its complexities into painting.

I was the artist in residence in the gallery at Santa Fe Fine Art …a week after losing my dad …ok…well, pull up those boot straps and get to work. Once again, confirmed, that there is a spiritual, artful connection with me and Santa Fe. Some stories are too bizarre to tell, even if I could manage to put them into words. Time & time again it never fails me. Inspiring AND…YEAH… art sales were great. Café Pasquales never disappoints a foodie like me, connecting with an old college roommate, making new friends & the amazing energy of the crew at Santa Fe Fine Art all contributed to the adventure. An old postcard from Becky says “ they came, they sold, they ate well…they were the obese artists”. Well, maybe an abbreviation of that humor, but makes me giggle…and know that the vibrations in Santa Fe rock on!

Painting live for 2 charity events in Denver requires a lot of schlepping but is always rewarding. THE standard question when painting live, on site is “how long does it take you to paint that?”…and my standard sassy answer is “a life time”. One event was at Denver Botanic Gardens for the French Summer Soiree. The gardens are alive with color& texture….not to mention the unbelievable front and center tangible dynamics the Henry Moore sculpture exhibition adds to this nature. If you live in Denver, don’t miss it. Go on a hot day in flip flops, dip your toes into the ponds & hang out for sunset. The bronzes of this exhibition at sunset are stunning. Fresh air, nature grows drowsy.

The second event raised money for the Anchor Center for the Blind, something I did not know a lot about but was WOWED by the end of the evening. Rain did not diminish the enthusiasm of supporters on the grounds of the Shanahan’s property. Stunning. Great $$ raised and great testimonials to the value of not only this center for the blind but our OWN sight!! Often taken for granted??? I painted 30x15” singular bottle of Chateau Margaux 1961 Grand Cru. What’s not to like about that? Someone send a case soon..please! Ha!

Eric Maisel, Ph, D. (www.ericmaisel.com) writes for ART CALENDER publication. Have never met him in person, but have gained intuitive knowledge and supportive insight into the creative process of artists from his monthly articles for years. Many that I cannot absorb in one reading, thus I save them in some scattered files and somehow the right saved messages always resurface at the right time. Recently, the message was “exhaust yourself”. I cannot do justice to paraphrasing his message www.artcalender.com Jan 2009. Go read it! He says that a pilgrim who goes on the journey with obstacles in mind is bound to wear out. This pilgrim who “crosses the desert because he has a vital message to deliver, a lost love to find or a pledge to keep, he will go further and perhaps arrive at his destination. He is not guaranteed success, the desert may still win. But his motivation will make all the difference”. Dig deep.

Life, death, hurdles, busy….I am blessed…..exhausting myself? YUP! Sometimes on canvas, other times in tears, but with passion. A high and a low, grounded in a firm foundation. Much due to my dad, my mom and my stepmother…and did I mention 5 brothers and sisters? Inspiration and appreciation of so much from so many people demand to not settle…ever. Admit to being frustrated at times if needed and remember that frustration builds character (remind me, please!)

I am not a proud person in the snobbery sense, but a person who takes pride in who I am, what I do, how I treat people and what my roots are. My dad treated many a patient with no resources, just a soul who needed a little surgery…at no charge! Grateful patients would bring homegrown veggies, jams, whatever they could offer as THANKS DOC!! Classic southern style! My dad probably “exhausted himself” in taking the oath to take care of others….beyond the 6 kids, God love him! Confidence is passed on. Confidence in itself is a gift. To brag was never his style, just to be was enough. My challenge is to be this person with my art. Give. Don’t settle. Keep the child in me. Laissez le bon temps roule!

“This is your time on earth, this is your chance to create worthy things, this is your opportunity to conceive a startling idea when, an instant before, nothing existed, and this is your MOMENT to represent yourself in ways that makes you PROUD.” Eric Maisel, ART CALENDER, 1/2009.

To Be Blue, 48x48....allowing myself "to be blue".

No Grass Growing Under These Feet!!!!

Amy Dixon — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 21:14:00 GMT

To say the pace is busy is a joke! An understatement and I am not complaining. Lucky me! Every day is fresh start and filled with new ideas & it is a gift. Education and observations from visitors to the gallery are beyond valuable and lend validation to my art, while sparking new ideas and directions. No grass growing under these feet! I have more ideas and directions I wish to go than time allows…but all in good time.

Friends at Brushstrokes Gallery were taking an encaustic workshop and invited me to come along. Wax is an interesting medium. When studying in Italy….ahem…way back when…I worked a lot in batik. Encaustic is similar in that the main medium is wax, but almost a reversal of process. I loved the workshop and left with a greater appreciation for encaustic painting, especially a Canadian artist, Tony Scherman, I have admired for a long time. His works are large format and absolutely incredible! What patience and talent! For my own process of loving to layer with glazes, thick paint, thin paint, drips, palette knife scrapes…encaustic was a good exercise, if you wish, in further exploring the energy and interest that transpires with building of color in layers and texture.

I’ve always been drawn to painting interiors. I photograph interiors everywhere I travel, whether it’s an antique store, a friend’s home, or a restaurant. These reference materials allow me to be a designer, of sorts, on the canvas. Our June feature is INTERIORS: The Spirit of an Empty Room. Italian Salon (24x24”) combines classical elements characteristic of many European spaces with a touch of contemporary. My thoughts were to paint with loose broad strokes, drips and charcoal drawings as a part of rendering the space so that it had interest and tells the story, but not so literally. The eye can finish much of the details without my needing to fuss over the minutia. One stroke, one line, can express lines of a settee, a chandelier or something as simple as a book. This approach will be even more fun when painting some of the many open air busy market scenes from photos taken in France, Italy and Finland. Stay tuned!

How many times have we read that all art is abstraction. True. Intuition and experimenting with different techniques keeps my creative juices flowing. Searching for a balance between realism and abstraction and seeing where it takes me. Sometimes an artistic diversion is a success and other times it is a complete mess! The important thing is to keep playing with the vast ideas that I have and following my intuition. One of these ideas has always been collage. I was in Miami for Art Basel in December and saw some amazing collage works. I’ve played around with billboard paper for several years and will continue to do so. There are stacks of it in my basement from a billboard contractor! Recently in New Orleans, I was drawn to a stack of old New Yorker magazine covers, so bought about 100 of them! Admittedly, ideas are all over the board, but somewhere in the jumble of my creative brain, there will be balance and with trial and error, success and failure, I’ll make sense of it all. Taking risks with good faith and no expectations other than to enjoy the process, learn from it, keep the good, throw out the bad and keep on going. Gosh knows “boredom” is not in my vocabulary!

If I knew where I had read this quote, I would properly acknowledge the writer, but honestly, I have no clue who/what/where…but will share it anyhow.

IMAGINATION GIVES MAN THE ABILITY TO PROJECT HIMSELF THROUGH TIME AND SPACE AND RISE ABOVE ALL LIMITATIONS.

Spring

Amy Dixon — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 03:57:00 GMT

What's on the easel...

One day it's Spring and the next it's questionable. But, what's on the easel is definitely Spring!

A palette of warm neutrals, with a splash of the vibrancy of what's blooming in my yard and yours.

Forysthia is spectacular. A subject that has inspired paintings for years, and is always worth revisiting.

New Orleans and the Jazz Festival are calling...food, music, fun, friends, and just plain good energy. I always return with a new twist, a new way of seeing subjects I love and a new lease of putting them on the easel. Stay tuned. Laissez les bons temps rouler!

Welcome

Amy Dixon — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 23:00:00 GMT

Ok...well here goes...1st blah blah blah BLOG!!! This one may be a little long so will tell you the story in quick blips...whew...what a marathon of a last 6 weeks. Promise, all will not be this nutzo...and I already know I can't write every detail. But...hope you can hear my humor and enthusiasm in the words.

Highlights/ low lights...call it what you wish and it's not about chemically processing hair...(even though we all do that)...it's about getting a gallery up and running in record time. Only accomplished because of a team of 4 fearless women (Amy, Kirklyn, Linda & Kelly) learning how to use one of those darn ladders that advertise use in 18 ways...well...ok...whatever THAT means...but by golly we put our sweet little blondish/brownish heads together and managed to figure it out...all right...maybe we had a little help from our contractor friend. Had to pay him off in cold beer. That always works. Men and beer. If only it were just that simple. But we have 4 fearless women who have great laughter...thank goodness.

Ripped up carpet that must not have been cleaned...EVER! I coughed for a week afterwards. Yuck! Reward under the carpet was hardwood floors. Not in great shape but wood, none the less and we have painted them with porch paint. That way when we get out of control with OUR paint, we can touch up easily.

Every wall was painted, exterior and interior. Two of us on the 18 ways ladder outside trying to paint under the VERY tall overhang was, well, interesting...not to mention the bitching about muffin tops in jeans and a whole host of other things we women yap about...daily. Monkeys on a ladder? I've been called worse.

In the midst of the many moving parts of getting a new business started, redoing the website, organizing a mailing list that was partly still on cocktail napkins (Kirklyn will attest to that) I learned a dear friend had died and off I flew to New Orleans for a funeral (and was there when the Saints won the Super Bowl...WHO DAT!?) Linda's house sold and she had to move out in 3 weeks...lots of chaos...my son wrecked my car on Vail pass (not really his fault) but that meant no vehicle for 6 weeks. Trying to move art in a borrowed Audi Quattro convertible is not easy...but the the chocolate lab liked riding in the front seat. Obstacles? DUH...but keep on going! Boulders in the road don't scare these fearless 4. Oh, and don't forget that somewhere in this mix of time, you have to PAINT!

The day I landed downtown to get all of my licenses happened to be the last day for medical marijuana deals...unbeknownst to me. So, there I sat with a room full of people wanting to sell pot to the public and they ranged from banker/lawyer types to tattoo artists. Seriously, what a sea of humanity...and me, the artist. Great people watching!

Valentine's Sunday, while trying to get the tailgate of the suburban down, I hyperextended my thumb. Ouch! Waited 2 weeks to go to the doctor. Stubborn and had too much to do. The "doctor week" landed me in a cast on my right/painting hand for 3 weeks. Top that with a cortizone shot in my knee had been swollen for weeks from a tweek while running...am I getting old? I hope not! I don't feel it, but the physical blunders made me a little grumpy. Painting in a cast is not the easiest, but I had no choice. Buck up, baby, bitch a little...ok. Well, maybe a lot... and paint! Now in a splint and I have to go to thumb therapy. Who ever heard of that?

I could ramble on and on and to say the days blur into nights blur into days is the dead level truth! Lists a mile long every day and with this fifty year old forgetful brain, a list is absolutely necessary. Scary the details we do remember and the elephants in the room we don't remember. What was your name again? Geez oh man...one has to laugh. If you relate to this, you are laughing and shaking your noggin too.

Many nights of burning the midnight oil to paint after scurrying about town doing start up gallery errands...drum roll please for the work hanging on the wall, signs up, lighting finished, wine purchased, food made, invites mailed, fresh flowers and time for the...GRAND AFFAIR.

Grand opening day...after days upon days of perfect Colorado weather...sunny and mild...we get 10 inches of snow and a blizzard. At 4pm you couldn't see across the street. "White out"... it's called. Go figure. Thank you Mother nature. Amazingly though, we had a packed house. Flattered and humbled by how many people made the effort to brave the snow and come to our grand affair. Kuddos to all!

My kids have been rockstars throughout it all. They survive on quesadillas and PB&J AND have offered their help in many many ways. Craig is one hellava handyman and Chris and Kaki, along with my 5th child, Matt, cleaned the entire gallery...spotless...after the opening...while responsible adults were celebrating next door at the Wash Park Grille. Kuddos to these kids!!! And...Brother John, Brother John...he, too is one hellava handy man and tarbender...but he didn't help clean up after the affair. He was next door with the responsible adults...toasting!

Is she ever going to shut up? Not, but for now I will end. Just so ya know...I was instructed to write as I talk and not to edit at all. The ADD (amy Dixon Dixon) revealed! Now you know why I paint big loose, drippy florals, then tight bar scenes and such. For those who know me, I hope you can hear my voice and my energy and know that I am grateful that you even read to the end. Auvoir! Ciao! Cheers! And as my tall skinny girlfriend says, Chow Mein!