Painting of the Day, January 28, 2012

By Donna Poulton

Zanes Grey’s most popular and well-known book, Riders of the Purple Sage, was published in 1912. The book was made into films five times starting in 1918 with the last version starring Ed Harris in 1996.  Similarly, the book has never been out of print with dozens of re-prints. Book covers for many of the editions were painted by popular illustrators of the time.  Among the most interesting are the covers by Douglas Duer (1887-1964) who studied with William Merritt Chase and Howard Pyle, and Maynard Dixon (1875-1946), who illustrated many books including The Oregon Trail.

Credit: E-bayCredit: E-bayCredit: davidrecommendsCredit: abebooks

Painting of the Day, December 18, 2011

By Donna Poulton

Maynard Dixon, The Enemy’s Country, 1942. Credit: Booksandvines.com

"My object has always been to get as close to the real thing as possible- people animals and country. The melodramatic Wild West idea is not for me the big possibility. The more lasting qualities are in the quiet and more broadly human aspects of Western life." - Maynard Dixon

Maynard Dixon, War-Talk, 1942. Credit: Booksandvines.com

In 1943 a limited edition of 1500 copies of Francis Parkman’s (1823-1893) The Oregon Tail was released. It was illustrated by Maynard Dixon (1875-1946) who chose to depict a three-week period during the summer of 1846 when Parkman spent time hunting buffalo with the Oglala Sioux. The illustrations were painted during Dixon’s mature period where he flattened the paint and worked with more minimal compositions.

Maynard Dixon, Running Buffalo, 1942. Credit: Booksandvines.com

For more information on Illustrators of The Oregon Trail you might be interested in this post:

Paintings Without Color: The Grisaille

By Donna Poulton

Known as ‘dead coloring’ by the old masters, grisaille paintings are characterized by the use of monochromatic (one color) paint.  Typically the paint used is a tone of black, but artists also use indigo blue, sepia or brown.  Starting in the sixteenth century the technique was used as ‘underpainting’ to help artists define light and dark areas of the painting before adding color.

Credit: Coeur D’Alene Art Auction

Thomas Moran (1837-1926),  Avalanche in Cottonwood Canyon, c. 1895, oil on board, 14 x 11 in.

Grisaille paintings are often offered for sale by western art auctions and galleries today. Oftentimes you’ll hear viewers wondering why the artist “didn’t finish the painting.” The simple answer is the works are finished. Newspapers and magazines in the latter part of the 19^th century and early 20^th needed black and white images for their publications—especially as they tried to fill the high demand of their readership for images of the West.

Credit: Coeur D’Alene Art Auction

Frederic Remington (1861-1909), He Made his Magazine Gun Blaze…, 1900, oil on canvas, 40 x 27 in.

In order to create the truest color, with the highest sense of drama, illustrators such as Thomas Moran, Frederic Remington, Charles Russell, Maynard Dixon, Frank Tenney Johnson, Herbert Buck Dunton, and William H.D. Koerner painted their illustrations for print using the tonal variations of black and white paint.

Credit: Christie’s New York, Rockerfeller Center

Frederic Remington (1861-1909), He Was the Law (Billy the Kid), c.1901, oil on canvas, 27 x 40 in.

Credit: Christie’s Los Angeles

Maynard Dixon (1875-1846), Go Get One, 1912, oil on board, 27 x 19 in.

Credit: Bonhams & Butterfields San Francisco

Maynard Dixon (1875-1846), The Car Was at His Hip-Almost, 1913, gouache on paper, 29 x 20 in.

Credit: Christie’s Los Angeles 10.29.08

Herbert Buck Dunton (1878-1936), Follerin’ the Tracks, 1907, oil on canvas, 30 x 18 in.

Painting of the Day, October 26, 2011

By Donna Poulton

By the time Maynard Dixon painted On Coming Storm in 1941, he was dividing his time between his homes in Tucson, Arizona and Mt. Carmel, Utah.  His work became increasingly minimal reflecting his interest and search for inherently geometric forms in the western landscape.  His Modernist brush flattened the details while his traditional eye absorbed all of the pictorial elements.

Credit: Santa Fe Art Auction

Maynard Dixon, (1875-1946), On Coming Storm, 1941 [Arizona], oil on canvas, 36 x 40 inches

My object has always been to get as close to the real thing as possible - people animals and country. The melodramatic Wild West idea is not for me the big possibility. The more lasting qualities are in the quiet and more broadly human aspects of Western life. -- Maynard Dixon