M.J. Levy Dickson

by Mary Lancaster

Most people just walk over the common, dried bunches of seaweed that waves leave strewn along island beaches. Artist M.J. Dickson studies and admires them, and with her unique ability, transforms what many consider shoreline trash into exquisitely delicate portraits of nature's beauty.

Known for her precise and lovely watercolor botanicals that graced the 2002 publication "Wildflowers of Nantucket," as well as for her landscapes, Dickson still creates watercolor paintings but is moving on to explore acrylics and different color applications along with continuing to paint in oils. Her subject matter is changing, too. These days she is enthralled with seaweed studies, the intricate designs of bird's nests, seabirds such as the cormorant and rendering work in a symbolic vein.

"It's not so much away from realism, but getting to its essence," she explained, adding that she is not only expanding her topics, she is widening her audience beyond the island. "I feel Nantucket is a laboratory for any endeavor. Nantucket is a microcosm. If something works here it might work somewhere else, so I do everything. As I grow and change, what I see changes. All of art and life are about pattern and balance. In my work that is what I'm trying to achieve using color and balance. Nothing could be simpler and harder."

Dickson, who keeps art journals where she draws and does one small watercolor each day, said her talent was encouraged in childhood by her grandmother, an actress who loved art, and her mother who treasured art and antiques.

"When I was little there wasn't a lot that kept my attention, but I could sit and draw as long as I had paper and crayons. It has been a wonderful way to see the world. I've been fortunate enough to meet interesting people and see a variety of art made in different cultures where what is appreciated is different from what is appreciated in our culture."

After high school, Dickson earned a diploma from Boston's School of the Museum of Fine Arts, and then a bachelor of fine arts degree from Tufts University. She taught at MIT, began to raise a family and returned to school to graduate in 2002 with a master's degree in art education from Boston University's College of Fine Arts.

"I never really questioned my choice of what I wanted to do," she said. "My identity was always relative to my art."

Dickson had been spending summers on the island and joined the Artists Association of Nantucket in 1972, before she and her husband Tom decided to make this their home in 1979. She mostly painted, but also taught art privately and at the AAN and became involved in committee activities within the community.

"There seemed to be a match between what I was doing and what people liked. That's why I didn't pursue showing [my work] off the island for many years," said Dickson, moving aside a few of her new, bright paintings to unroll a 30-foot length of Rives paper holding a work in progress of watercolor seaweed studies.

"If I kept worrying about showing my work I wouldn't do a project like this because nobody knows how to show it," she said. "I'm doing it for myself. It's restful and it's fun."

Dickson travels as much as she can and has been influenced and inspired by the art of other countries as well as opportunities to share her eye and knowledge with artists in foreign nations.

Currently, she is following an inner direction rising from the epic Indian legend "Ramayana," a story of Prince Rama who represents goodness and must combat Ravana, the symbol of evil. The tale will result in a series of paintings Dickson is excited about producing.

"I want someone to ask a question because of what they've seen," she said. "That is important to me."

In the future, Dickson said she wants to work on a larger scale, something that can be difficult on Nantucket because of the logistical difficulties in transporting paintings to mainland galleries interested in subjects unrelated to the island and where there is ample wall space for displays. She also intends to continue learning more about painting with acrylics and may delve into sculpture.
Perhaps her greatest challenge is about to begin.

This fall, Dickson will be commuting a couple of days a week to assist in creating art projects for students of The Perkins School for the Blind in Watertown, Mass. It is another way for her to give of her talent and bring new, meaningful experiences to the children and adults she will guide.

"Teaching inspires me," said Dickson. "It is the chance to share an idea. It is also the idea that you might learn something that would be of benefit to someone else."

Original article here

MJ Levy Dickson

The Nantucket Independent

M.J. Levy Dickson