Kevin Dixon
KEVIN DIXON
HISTORY & BACKGROUND
For as long as I can remember I have always drawn and painted. As a child I loved nothing better than lying on the rug in front of the fire with a drawing book and my set of Derwent coloured pencils.
The school I attended was particularly strong on the arts; with a superbly equipped art department and enthusiastic tutors who gave us wonderful encouragement. My favourite working environment was in the deep broadleaf woodlands that surrounded the school and I would spend many classes and lunchtimes trying to interpret the effects of dappled light through the trees.
Hard work and the dedication of my tutors eventually paid off when I gained a place at Leeds College of Art (famous for its former student Henry Moore). After studying at Leeds during the day and playing guitar in a band at night to supplement my grant, I started my career as an illustrator in advertising. I eventually formed my own design-based company in 1976 producing illustration and design for many national companies.
I now paint full time from my Nesfield studio at the heart of the Wharfe Valley just a few hundred yards from where Herbert Royale R.A had his studio, until his death in 1958.
Since becoming a full time painter my work has been exhibited in the UK, New England and France, with paintings in private collections as far away as New Zealand. My last exhibition in Leeds A Tuscan Summer was a complete sell out much to my delight.
IDEAS & INSPIRATIONS
The balance between light and shade has always fascinated me, particularly when strong sunshine changes colours from non-descript hues to deep vibrant tones making shadows and a kaleidoscope of wonderful shades.
I enjoy watching the constant movement, moods and colours of the sky; the way that clouds form with their subtle shadows of blues, pinks and ochre, casting huge areas of soft tone across the landscape creating an ever-changing vista. The skies that Turner painted were one of my earliest recollections of the power of colour in the sky and seeing the enormous painting of The Fighting Temeraire in the National Gallery when I was sixteen changed my view of the colour of skies forever.
The vibrancy of sun soaked lands; hot earth and brilliant skies have been my main source of inspiration especially for the past fifteen years where I have had a home in the South of France. I spend many of my days there drawing and collecting references in my sketchbook. Back at my studio I work my drawings up into paintings, although my greatest joy is to move my easel outside and work in the sun.
I have always been fascinated by the balance between light and shade particularly when strong sunshine changes colours from non-descript hues to deep vibrant tones making shadows a kaleidoscope of wonderful shades.
FROM PALETTE TO PICTURE
No matter where we go I always carry a camera and a sketchpad to capture a special moment or view that might otherwise be lost. It is from these references that my paintings are created.
More often than not my work is produced from a specific drawing that I have done, but sometimes I will combine several sketches such as group of trees or a distant view to make a pleasing composition or image.
I usually work my subject up on to the canvas using ultramarine and magenta, putting in the darks and shadow areas first, then working into the lighter parts with violet and viridian until the canvas is completely covered with loose dark brushwork. I then leave it to dry whilst choosing another drawing and starting the process over again. I always have 10 or 15 paintings on the go at any one time all at different stages.
When the initial stage of work is dry I start on the lighter areas, moving down from the sky building up the layers of paint, working into the darks and then back into the highlights until I achieve the effects of light and shade that I strive for.
Once a painting is almost complete I pop it into a frame on an easel in the corner of my studio for a few days before adding the final highlights.
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF KEVIN DIXON I am usually in my studio, a wonderful light and airy place with spectacular views, by 8.30am. My day starts quietly with me deciding what I will work on first. I dont like starting a painting that is close to the final stages, so I will perhaps start by selecting a new sketch, working it on to a fresh canvas with loose brushstrokes to get my rhythm going.
As the morning progresses I feel more confident with my painting and move on to canvases that are closer to completion, switching on radio 4 and making myself a strong black coffee. After a couple of hours I again feel the need for quiet, so I turn off the radio and maybe have a walk down the meadow and through the woods sometimes doing a little drawing on the way or collecting logs for the fires.
After lunch my painting becomes much more fluent and the need for music stronger. Sometimes its classical, but invariably if the work is going well I switch to blues and then to the style of music I play with my band Stones, Hendrix, Clapton.
I cant work in artificial light, so as the natural light fades I clean my brushes,a bottle of wine, light a fire and start to relax always on a high.
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