Dot Courson

About Dot Courson

Art has always been my passion. Growing up in the rural south, I found art in the trees and the layering of the distant landscape- pastures, streams, and cloudy hills at the horizon. It is amazing to find beauty in things others pass up every day without notice. I’ve always had a strong affinity to natural design, visual rhythm, and light. In life, I enjoy watching graceful dance, rhythmic ocean waves, swirling wind movements over fields, and graceful clouds. My goal in incorporating these natural design elements is to make viewing art as relaxing as hearing a lovely melody. But I take care to avoid emptying the painting of real substance by over-designing my works. Some of my paintings are created on location working outside- feeling the very air I am painting into the scene. Some textures are smooth, and some are painted more thickly with a brush or palette knife. I take small paintings and photos inside to my studio to paint large works (some up to 72 inches and their visual depth is difficult to appreciate in a photograph). My ongoing “Rural South Collection” consists of southern scenery- motifs that allows the viewer to create a visual story. I use a limited palette, refusing to have bright colors just for the sake of being “pretty”. I want my paintings to speak in a whisper prompting the viewer to lean in closer. My subject matter tends to lean toward memories of the most unique and creatively rich patches of the earth that ever existed: the Mississippi Delta. I was greatly influenced by the area from my childhood summers there with my share-cropping grandparents. Like characters in a Faulkner novel, my subject and focus changes from location to location. The Appalachian foothills create beautiful vistas, intimately painted trees and lush vegetation. After years of trying to find “my own voice”, I found it by being passionate without any fuss or concern over my painting style.