Dixon, Maynard

Born on a ranch near Fresno, California in the San Joaquin Valley on January 24, 1875, Maynard Dixon, originally named Henry St. John Dixon which later changed to Lafayette Maynard Dixon on September 8, 1875, became a noted illustrator, landscape, and mural painter of the early 20th-century American West, especially the desert, Indians, early settlers, and cowboys.

Maynard Dixon’s mentor, Charles Lummis, encouraged Dixon early in his painting career to leave California, and “travel East to see the real West”. Maynard Dixon did just that, traveling the many roads that crisscrossed the West: Montana, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico. Lasting weeks, to even months, these trips provided Maynard Dixon with the inspiration to create. He was forever drawn to the vistas and peoples inhabiting these remote western lands.

When Maynard Dixon first visited Arizona, at the turn of the 20th century, it was wild, open territory, inhabited primarily by Hispanics and Native Americans. In 1902, he made his first visit to Lorenzo Hubbell’s Ganado trading post, and came away with wonderful sketches he would use as inspiration for many years to come. Viewing these works, one can imagine the awe Maynard Dixon felt in the raw beauty of the landscape and its inhabitants. He would return to Arizona many times, ultimately making Tucson his final home.

Episodes:
Maynard Dixon, Two Worlds Indigenous Radio, Poldark on MASTERPIECE, Maestro Antonio Pappano
Anna Sofaer, Maynard Dixon, Michelle Otero