the art of dixie sampier

Strange Rock House

Dixie — Wed, 16 May 2012 16:12:38 +0000

There are so many things to do for the next painting…
I have so many resources, and ideas, it’s like what should I do next? Well, I could just draw straws (no, I don’t have an interest in drawing what straws look like, heh, heh! Perhaps I could pick out something blind-folded and go for it! Well, the best thing would be to do what is fresh on the list.
For many years I have been wanting to do this particular castle-like place that we see on our way home from the San Bernardino mountains, on the 215 freeway, but never have time to pull off the road and find the way to it, but finally, in 2008′ my husband had some spare time to drive up to the place that sits on a hill and I got some terrific photos of it, and of course, I’m curious about it and I wonder who lives there and the history of this unusual looking place in Perris, CA.

Someday I will get around to painting this particular scene of this rock house that seems so strange. The problem is, I don’t have enough time in my life to do all there is to do on my list! This says, I will never run out of subjects to paint. I wrote about this story and took these pics in year 2008, that means I far behind with some of my ideas for paintings. Oh dear! It is now 2012!

Changed Her Mind

Dixie — Wed, 09 May 2012 20:11:30 +0000

I like to tell short stories about what happens to me as an artist. About 5 years ago there was a new store near my home that sold jewelry at a discount and also some second-hand things. This little store had just relocated to a new place and had vacant walls. I was glad to see that she had moved to her new place and I went to check it out. Since she had vacant walls, I offered my paintings for her to sell on consignment. We worked for almost an hour to get everything arranged just right throughout the little store pad. After I got home, she called and said she changed her mind because my prices didn’t seem to be discount prices like her merchandise, so I went back and took everything down and said good-bye! My prices are very reasonable. She loved my cards at least and bought a few. Eventually she found stuff to hang on the walls that was cheap. By the way, her business closed down within a year, but I’m still in business!

Paintings by my Friends

Dixie — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 17:14:22 +0000

I find it rather odd that I have a friend whom I sometimes walk with who said that her former room-mate was Valerie Jungck. I was in a class with Valerie one day and she was going to throw her fish painting in the trash and I said I wanted it and it now hangs in my husband’s office. I never expected to run into this artist’s friend as one of my neighbors, hence, small world.
The other painting in my home is by Pauline Doblado. I have her painting because I cleaned out her friend’s mobile home when her friend D.Brown passed away, and there was no one available to get rid of D. Brown’s stuff, so I was lucky to get this floral painting by Pauline who was one of my friend’s in the art association many years ago. I feel very fortunate to have two free paintings who make me think of friend connections.

The Basket is Gone!

Dixie — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 19:26:41 +0000

Just last week I did this painting of the old bike in from of the Soap Shop at Summers Past Farm and then today I go to paint and visit there and find the basket is gone off of the bike. I will miss it because the owner always had something planted and growing in it, sometimes pansies. The time that I took this picture a couple of years ago, there were pretty orange flowers in the basket. It is so strange that sometimes what I paint may sometimes disappear! It happened again today!

New Juice!

Dixie — Sat, 14 Apr 2012 16:22:54 +0000

Looking at this new set of opaque watercolors gets my inspiration juices flowing! What yummy colors!

When I was browsing through an art magazine I found this painting by Donna Zagotta and it made me wonder how she came about doing what she does with paint. I found a DVD by her and learned that she uses all these juicy colors by Holbein, and can paint like it is oil paint, not having to save the white areas in the painting. How exciting! And then I found that she was a guest at the SDWS to do a demonstration.

I bought all the colors she used, but was intimidated to plunge in and get busy doing her way of painting. My new palette keeper and new paints just kept waiting for me in my studio for 5 months until I finally got the nerve to dip in and get going. Once I dipped in and got started on a painting using the new paints I thought I had stepped into a new window of something divine! Oh my goodness! What a thrill and how exciting, I felt like a kid in a candy store! So now I’m on my way to new flights of adventure and creating with new sense of painting like never before.

At the Coffee Shop

Dixie — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 12:11:43 +0000

How nice of Jerry Wilson (an art collector) to show up at my show at The Coffee Grounds! He is observing the magazine that my collages were featured in, The Apprentice. My show at this coffee place was to be taken down on March 30th, and the owner decided to keep it awhile longer. I guess he likes my coffee theme collages on his wall. I’m delighted to have it hanging there and am wondering how long it will stay, but, that’s better than having to take it down too soon. When I had my “meet the artist” event at this coffee shop, it was kind of odd that all my friends were buzzing about my beach painting that took a blue ribbon at the show at Spanish Village in the month of March, and so Jerry decided he wanted to buy it, and hadn’t even seen it yet! He wants it for the new collection of art that he has of people on the beach. At this time, that painting is at the Foothills Art Association competition in La Mesa, expecting an award for the members’ only show this month. It will be a surprise to find out in a few days if it won an award or not.

February in March

Dixie — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 22:46:47 +0000

That sounds kind of painterly! Today is a cold, windy and rainy day and I’m reminded of this little painting that I did many Februaries ago. I was coming home, off of the freeway and there before me was this scene that I took some mental notes of and as soon as I got home I rushed to my watercolors and got it down on paper, that cold and dreary look that I had just seen. Doing a painting from a memory is such a challenge and I love to have the ability to record the visual moment that I experienced. Today is March 17th, but I’m reminded of that cold day of February and dipping into my paints, spreading the colors onto a damp watercolor paper. I love the effects of how watercolors behave and having the control of making something happen. This is a painting that I wouldn’t dare put into a frame and put up for sale because it is a precious memory of experiencing a moment in time and being able to enjoy it later in life and having a digital image of it to share with those who care to see what it is that I paint. Painting is precious!

Another Meet the Artist Event

Dixie — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 12:15:28 +0000

I love this coffee shop where I have 10 of my collages hanging. It was a fun day when I scheduled for friends to come meet with me last Saturday. I plan to have a second event on March 24th from 1 until 4 p.m. The owner of the coffee shop likes my kind of friends! My work will be hanging until March 30th, so I hope everyone has a chance to see it. It really is a nice coffee place and I like the way Joe fixed my Arctic Mocha!

A Blue Ribbon!

Dixie — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 12:41:04 +0000

I wasn’t there to get my cash prize at the reception, but was glad to get a phone call from the art association president telling me I won 1st. Place!!! My acrylic painting, “Twenty Umbrellas” on a canvas measuring 12″x 48″ was liked by the judge, June Maxion. I was gone to a funeral in Ramona for a dear friend, Don Meadows, who was a neighbor while we lived in Morgan City, LA. We moved back to CA, and so did his family in the 1980′s and we were glad to reunite in the San Diego area.

The Coffee Grounds

Dixie — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 02:20:09 +0000

Everything fit so great! I arrived at the coffee shop this afternoon, with 10 collages to fit to the wall that the manager allowed me to use for my show. I was not sure how it would all fit when I got there. There were some nails already in the wall, but not exactly where I needed them and I was allowed to remove 3 of the pieces the owner had for his own decor. I only had to bang in one nail or two and used a couple of Command hooks which are removeable when I take the exhibit down on March 30th. When I finished hanging everything it felt like I had completed a puzzle, so amazed that it all worked together, one by one, all the different shapes of canvas that I have my coffee theme collages on. What a relief! Now I can’t wait till the 10th of March when it is Meet the Artist day in the afternoon at 2 until 4.