Winter 2012 Newsletter No.1

Lee Nixon - Fine Art

No. 1 Winter 2011 http://lee-nixon.artistswebsites.com



Hello and thank you for stopping by my website to see my Impressionist paintings, drawings, and floral paintings. I have been painting landscapes and other subject matter for nearly 48 years. My paintings reflect a reverence for a serene earth, and the desire to share it with you through color, pattern, and texture. I work primarily in acrylics for their versatility and compatibility with other media.



I have exciting news regarding a new exhibit during 2012. The University of Virginia Medical Center Arts Committee selected my work for an exhibit. The Medical Center’s art program is an acknowledgement of the value of art in promoting a healing environment and I have the opportunity to be included in this endeavor. Exhibit dates are June 29, 2012 to August 31, 2012.



I have responded to that golden opportunity by creating a body of work with a distinctive style as an artist. I have chosen Impressionist Landscapes and will have a total of 15 - 20 paintings. All paintings will be characterized by brilliant contrasting colors, rich textural surfaces and an impressive palette.

This is necessary to get people’s attention and to be recognizable.



The subject matter will include dynamic waterfalls which were inspired by the family’s trip to the Niagara Falls. The Rapidan River is repeated in many of the paintings. A commissioned painting of the Rapidan River was completed last year for a patron of the arts! I have also captured the Blue Ridge Mountains in its splendid raiment of blues with majestic cloud formations And of course, the golden meadows with hay bells. The latest paintings will appear online after the exhibition.



Two paintings received selected awards in 2011: A Circular View of Summer,(a floral painting of a daisy) and Strolling Down Old Rapidan Road. Both painting received first place out of hundreds of entries!

New Exhibition

On Saturday November 13, I hung twenty five acrylic paints at the New Hoofbeats Therapeutic Riding Center's building. Website: http://www.veaa.org/oppprtunity.html

It is an excellent facility in Lexington, Virginia for exhibiting art work. The theme of the show is: Impressions, and includes both landscape and Floral paintings. All paintings are for sale and lower in price since it is not an official gallery. If you are in the area, please drop in.

Fawns Open Hiding Place

Strolling Down Old Rapidan Road Series

What's in store for 2011

View Of The
Blue Ridge

New Impressionist Landscape paintings will be the main focus for 2011. Various seasons will be represented.

 I will experiment with different impasto techniques. For example; modeling paste, tissue paper, and heavy paint pigments.

I will experiment with various tools for modeling and creating textures.

The Colour Shaper, for example, appears to be an interesting tool for manipulating paint. There are several different points: the cup chisel for adjusting contours and edges, the taper point for applying and carving paint, the flat chisel for mixing paint on the canvas, the cup round for controlling thick paint and creating soft edge strokes, and the angel chisel for creating expressive, precise strokes as it works from thick to thin.

Latest Paintings on exhibition

New paintings, fresh from the palette are on exhibition at the Art Upstairs Gallery in Charlottesville, Virginia for the month of May. See the website: http://www.artupstairsgallery.com/  They should be online in the next few days.

Nixon's 16 x 20 Acrylic painting  (Strolling Down Rapidan Road Series)

Nixon's 16 x 20 Acrylic painting (Roses - The Beauty of Life)

Nixon's 8 x 10 Acrylic painting ( Announcement of Spring)

A Theme For Artists - The Stars of the Earth

Flowers - The Stars of the Earth

A bouquet of flowers can make the heart sing, can brighten up a gloomy day, lift up a depressed heart, and even cause friendship and romance to sprout and flourish.

A Glow of Happiness

Men have referred to them as 'the stars of the earth'. They are more than just creations of decorative beauty. The fragile shapes, the many fragrances, and infinite glorious colors reveal intrinsic qualities which inspires us.

A  Trilogy of Happiness

I will continue to explore and render the stars of the earth through intricate patterns, brilliant colors, and exciting textures.

A Splash of Spring

Daisy - A Circular Splendor of Summer

  

Inspiration In The Natural World

Paintings by  Lee J. Nixon
 I am inspired by the skill and imagination abounding in the natural world. So, I have re-created the exquisite patterns found on trees, the intricate pattern of flowers and rolling hills with bundles of hay.

Several paintings were inspired by the application of natural elements such as: gravel and sand for 'actual' textures. Also, I have experimented with tissue paper to simulate the rugged textures of trees, to the solid mass of smooth rocks and stones.

By utilizing the science of optics, I often apply strokes of pure contrasting complementary colors to excite the viewer's eye so that the color appears to leap off the canvas.

Golden Nuggets of Orange

Youth Contemplating The Future

Colorful Winter Garden

Scenic View Alongside a Gravel Road

NEW PAINTINGS AND IDEAS

Showy Pink Peonies

“Double Take” is a series of Floral paintings. Each Flower is painted twice to capture a different perspective. Double Take is an artistic journey of several years to capture the aesthetical beauty, both extrinsic and intrinsic, of a variety of flowers common to Orange County and the state of Virginia. Many of the inspirations came from my home, gardens and parks in the town of Orange, and Mrs. Robinson floral garden on Mill Street.



Each floral design denotes an aesthetical experience.

                                                               Showy Pink Peonies
Peony -represents a soft radiant feeling of love, purity and compassion. It is very delicate, as rain will wash away its blossoms. It is strong and fragile at the same time in that the ‘Peony’ will return year after year with hardly any assistance. Although it is fragile, its wide open petals share its beauty and harmony with others. Its fragrance relaxes. The ‘Peony’ bursts forth in a spectacular array of reddish hues!