Meet Dawn Hughes

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dawn Hughes.

Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
I traveled a lot as a child, graduated from Kubasaki High School on Okinawa, and attended all three Arizona universities. I am a retired educator having worked in Gilbert and Mesa, Arizona. I taught art, math, at-risk kiddos, and was a high school counselor for the last 15 of my 32-year career in education. My husband and I travel a lot, from all over the US, Canada, and Mexico, to Europe and the British Isles, to Australia and New Zealand. My husband and I recently moved to Payson, AZ. Together we have 5 children and 11 grandchildren all of whom get along and love spending time together at our many family gatherings. I golf, exercise, and play bridge. When I get in my studio, I’m usually there for hours, just letting the paint flow. Time is precious, so, little is wasted!

Please tell us about your art.
I’ve always had a passion for the arts. I love studying art history and experiencing that history first hand by visiting museums and exhibitions wherever we travel. I’ve worked in clay, watercolor, oils, wood and metals. My latest medium preference is acrylic. My subject matter and style are eclectic. My talent comes from observation, practice, experience and experiment, and some of it is innate. I am inspired and motivated to create by a diverse range of sources – my surroundings, my artist friends, art from past and present that I admire, nature, and just wanting to have fun in my studio! If my paintings were sounds, what would you hear – a child’s melody hummed by a nursing mother, Malaguena Salerosa played on an acoustic guitar, Little Feat’s synthesizer squealing it’s horn sound to a crescendo, the wind whispering through Ponderosa pines, the quiet of a still lake, the frenetic cry of the coyote, the bugling call of a bull elk – if my paintings were sounds, what would you hear?

What do you think about conditions for artists today? Has life become easier or harder for artists in recent years? What can cities like ours do to encourage and help art and artists thrive?
My greatest concern starts with our schools. It seems the first areas to be diminished or cut are in the arts. Sadly, there is little introduction to career opportunities that could blossom and grow from exposure in art, whether it be in music, theatre, photography, videography, sequential art, conceptual art, architecture, sculpture, ceramics, painting, design, and poetry. There is an artist in all of us. The talent just needs opportunity, education, practice, encouragement and recognition to help it come forth. I live in a relatively small town, but the community embraces its artists. Restaurants encourage artists to display their work, private neighborhoods host art shows for the local art league, the community college espouses seniors to participate in their classes, and the art league is very active in promoting the members.

How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
I am in the process of developing a web page, joining the local artist league, and presenting at local venues. Presently, the only web presence I have is on Pinterest – http://www.pinterest.com/dawnhughes1/
As with any social media, the more it is viewed and liked, the more it helps with exposure.

Contact Info:

• Address: 2502 E Scenic Dr
  Payson, AZ 85541
• Phone: 6022145621
• Email: DAWNHUGHES1@MSN.COM
• Other: https://www.pinterest.com/dawnhughes1/

Image Credit:
Dawn Hughes

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