Ventana Fine Art, Santa Fe, NM
September 23-October 15
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- John Axton, Hopi Winds, oil, 24 x 24.
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- Doug Dawson, Tin Roof, pastel, 16 x 18.
Ventana Fine Art opened its doors in Santa Fe almost 40 years ago, and ever since then, painters John Axton and Doug Dawson have been part of its stable of artists. The gallery has hosted numerous solo exhibitions for each artist over the years, as well as a few two-person shows. This September, Ventana is once again exhibiting their work side by side. Each artist has 20 new works on view.
Axton and Dawson first met in the early 1970s as young artists who exhibited together at art fairs in Denver, CO, and have maintained a friendship over the ensuing decades. According to Ventana sales manager Wolfgang Mabry, their work is symbiotic because of their aesthetic strengths and rich subtextual content. “John is a minimalist and a master oil painter,” Mabry says. “There will be new landscapes and seascapes that give a subtle first impression and quickly reveal highly rewarding complexity. We will also have new iterations on his lone-bison theme and on his spare and mysterious Southwestern architecture theme.”
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- John Axton, Shelter Cove, oil, 30 x 30.
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- John Axton, Spinnaker Winds, oil, 24 x 24.
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- John Axton, Scrimshaw Diaries, oil, 24 x 24.
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- John Axton, Gypsy Fires, oil, 18 x 24.
Axton says some of his dreamlike seascapes were created over the past year, when he was unable to leave his desert home and instead used his memory and imagination to “visit” the ocean on canvas. These enchanting, ethereal scenes are displayed alongside his more abstract, geometric designs. Axton recently returned to that nonobjective style for a few paintings. “This is not a new style for me,” he says. “It’s like they say in golf: I’ve had that club in my bag for a while, I just haven’t used it in a few rounds.”
Commenting on Dawson’s new work, Mabry says, “Doug is a master of oil and pastel, and this show will introduce new works in both media. His portraits have a universality that evokes remembrance and recognition. His paintings of places glow with emotional impact, whether urban or small town, night or day.” Dawson, who’s an instructor at the Art Students League of Denver, which he co-founded, says the only theme in his recent work is continuity. “One painting or series inspires or connects to the next,” he says. “An artist-friend best put it this way: It’s like holding a string and following it hand over hand to see where it leads you.”
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- Doug Dawson, Under the Neon, pastel, 16 x 20.
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- Doug Dawson, Sunburst Tree, pastel, 16 x 20.
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- Doug Dawson, Fancy Hat, pastel, 20 x 16.
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- Doug Dawson, Eagle’s Nest Lake, pastel, 16 x 20.
Tune in to live conversations with Axton in his Santa Fe studio on Thursday, September 23, and with Dawson in his Denver studio on Thursday, September 30, to learn more about their creative processes and their latest work. The gallery is hosting these talks, which are streamed on Zoom and Facebook Live, in lieu of an opening reception. –Allison Malafronte
contact information
505.983.8815
www.ventanafineart.com
This story appeared in the August/September 2021 issue of Southwest Art magazine.