Fiona Dowdee - Contemporary Painter

     My artistic practice is most often large-scale oil paintings on canvas that demand attention from the viewer. I use oil paint to bring a classical style to my work. Each time I touch oil paint to canvas it is as if I am following in the footsteps of past artists. I use small soft brushes to create a thinness of paint that disguises the marks of the artist in favor of the subjects likeness. When painting I create an artistic rendition which resembles the subject as closely as possible, blurring the lines between art and life.

     I paint my friends and people who inspire me, the youth of today. I paint my generation in a realistic, bold, and confrontational way. The subject’s eye contact or lack thereof being the focal point of the composition.

 My generation has been called apathetic and selfish, a categorization that we prove wrong on a daily basis. This is why I portray the youth in a confidant pose with direct eye contact to rebel against these generalizations.

     I find that I can use portraiture, which traditionally has been a tool for the elite to show wealth and power, to create a juxtaposition between traditional styles and contemporary ideas: an adolescent subject that demands to be recognized and demands a future. The subject stares directly into the eyes of the viewer as if to defy their judgment. 

Exhibitions 

Group

2019

9x12, Resin Gallery

2018

AP art show, Mira costa highschool

Awards 

Best artist of senior class

2019

2019

Rotary club craft award - Excellence in painting

2019

Best in show

2017

Rotary club Craft award - Excellence in painting

Education 

2020

Florence academy of art, old masters workshop

2016 - 2019

Mira costa highschool

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