Born and raised in the Heart of Dixie, I have lived all over the state of Alabama, but Alabaster, Alabama is where I call home. I graduated from the University of Montevallo in 1993 with a Bachelor in Fine Arts with a degree in Graphic Design and Painting. However, my one true love has always been painting.
Growing up in a world where successful artist were thought to be poor and lonely and tragic. So, I went with the more “responsible” and “safe” way and concentrated on Graphic Design for the next twenty something years.
I continued to paint though. Mostly as a hobby or as a crafts and child décor artist because I was still stuck in the mindset that I couldn’t make it as an artist. As a busy mom of three boys, this kept me sated for a time.
As my three boys got older and my world was full of ball practices, band practices, games and field trips, I put the paint brushes down for many years so I could be the mom I wanted to be.
Four years ago that all changed for me. My middle son was about to leave for college and I wanted to paint something for his new apartment. The joy that came over me as I painted that day was something that seemed to bring me to life.
I realized that day how much art and creating was such a joyful and peaceful part of me.
I haven’t put the paint brush down since.
I would call my style of painting as Contrary Contemporary.
Every painting I create, whether it is a landscape, portrait, abstract or floral, the subject of each painting is the same. They are all stories.
My goal with each piece is to recreate a specific moment in time. I lay paint on the canvas with intention to recollect a memory or feeling and capture something that is meaningful.
Whether it is a painting of a place where my client proposed to his wife or a favorite place out on a lake, you will find a story there.
My abstracts tell my story and capture a specific emotional moments in my life and with each piece. With each painting, I intend to bring you the same emotion I felt while painting it. I am sharing that moment with you.
If I had to give my painting style a name, I would call it Contrary Contemporary, a Yin and Yang way of painting where I use a combination of textures and looseness in my strokes and contrast it with smooth details to make them work together in harmony. I love the mixture of the non perfect application that comes with my fingers, palette knives, combs and various materials combined with precise attention to the small details with the tiniest paintbrush.
I paint stories.
I paint stories. Your stories and mine and my aim is to bring those stories to life on the canvas.
The act of painting itself is a beautiful way to work through feelings. My studio is my happy place where I can just be real and unapologetic. I play, I mess up, I start over and am always looking for something new to learn. Painting for me has become not just an act of creation but also to living, to healing and freeing where I can release my emotions and convert them into something powerful. This is most evident in my abstract pieces which reveal the most raw places in me.
Follow me on Instragram and Facebook to keep up with my latest works.
What people are saying…
“To say I am in awe is an understatement. A few months ago, Max and I decided we wanted to have a piece of art commissioned by someone local and I am so thrilled that we did! @dawnsouthart really captured my memories of NYC perfectly and I couldn’t be more thankful! To have her talent displayed in our living room is huge and we are so impressed with the quality of work in her craft. We will definitely be commissioning another piece in the future! Thank you, Dawn!! Your work is amazing!!”
~MGannon
“I already knew @dawnsouth was an incredibly talented artist, and today I became the proud owner of a @dawnsouthart original! I am in awe of this beautiful abstract she painted on commission for my bedroom. And the fact that it bears her signature makes it all the more special. I am absolutely in love with it! ❤️❤️❤️”
~SLevy
“Big shout out to the talented, @dawnsouth , for the wonderful painting commemorating my first date with [my wife]! Our first date was at @altheatre during an @am0slee concert on Feb 27, 2017, so Dawn recreated the theatre as it looked on that day. We came up with this idea a couple of months ago as a surprise birthday/wedding present for Sallie, and @dawnsouthart blew us away with the end result. Thank you for the amazing painting, Dawn!”
~TWatson
“Dawn, you’re the best! I’ve got your painting of me in my classroom and everyone comments on how incredible of a job you did. Still can’t thank you enough! Reminds me of all the amazing memories and friendships formed in the AUMB every day!”
~PFlowers
“Tears. Literally. You don’t know how special my daddy and that farm is to me. Thank you. You captured it perfectly!”
~ MSquires
