About the Artist

BIO: 

Carrie Nixon grew up in Metro Detroit, MI and was intrigued by the industrial landscape as well as the beauty of the nearby Great Lakes.  On her mother's side of the family, there had been several generations of artists.  Carrie earned a BA in Art from Yale University (New Haven, CT), where she studied with William Bailey, Bernard Chaet, and Richard Lytle.  She earned an MFA in Drawing from Wayne State University (Detroit, MI), where she studied with Stanley Rosenthal, Jim Nawara, and John Hegarty.  By age 24, she had lived in France, Italy, and Peru.  After her MFA, Carrie taught Drawing and Design and was tenured at the University of Cincinnati (OH) and later at Assumption University (Worcester, MA).  After 35 years of College-level Art teaching, she now paints and draws full-time and pursues a lasting commitment to figurative work.  She primarily works from life, valuing genuine interaction with the model and motif over painting from screens.  A recent development is that during the Pandemic, with all figure sessions closed, she discovered a strong interest in plein air and cityscape painting.  Carrie emphasizes directness, mark-making, and layering in her work, has exhibited extensively in the Northeast and Midwest.

STATEMENT & FAVORITE QUOTE:

Eleanor Dickinson:  "I experience things by drawing them."

In a society increasingly dominated by the "artificial":   Artificial Intelligence, artificial flavorings, etc., it is counter-cultural to stand in front of a live human or landscape for hours and attempt to recreate them---through one's personal filter---with pigments + oil or burnt wood/charcoal.  My hope is that my paintings and drawings synthesize the essence, uniqueness, and value of the subject with my own distinctive colors, marks, and enthusiasm.  It is also a hope to lead viewers themselves to look more carefully at their surroundings, in our world that is imperfect but always interesting.