US Route 89 Roadside Diversion: Maynard Dixon Living History Museum
October 12, 2012 by James Cowlin
Filed under All Blog Posts, Featured Blog Posts, Utah
Usually when we see anything related to art on one of our road trips, we stop immediately to investigate, occasionally making dangerous u-turns to get there. We had stopped at the Maynard Dixon Home and Studio in Mt. Carmel, Utah, on several trips only to find we were there on the wrong day or at the wrong time. Finally on our last trip through southern Utah, we arrived when it was open.
The first stop is the Bingham Gallery which houses the Thunderbird Foundation for the Arts and a beautiful gallery space for exhibitions. The Foundation’s mission is to preserve Dixon’s home and provide educational programs and art exhibits that further the legacy of Maynard Dixon’s contribution to American art.
Dixon was born in California in 1875 and died in Tucson, Arizona, in 1946. He traveled extensively throughout the west which is reflected in his paintings ranging from the mountains of Montana to the deserts of Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico. In 1939, he built the home in Mt. Carmel and lived there during the summer with his wife Edith Hamlin. In 1940, they completed a home in Tucson where they lived in the winter until his death.
A tour of the Dixon property includes the log home, guest quarters and the studio which was actually completed after Dixon’s death. A path leads up a hill behind the studio to the spot where Dixon’s ashes are buried. From this lookout, Dixon was inspired to make paintings of the white sandstone cliffs across the valley.
For information about touring the Maynard Dixon home and studio, visit the Thunderbird Foundation for the Arts website.
To find your way to Mt. Carmel, Utah, go to the Kanab to Sevier Road Trip Guide on the US Route 89 Appreciation Society website.
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