Maynard Dixon (1875-1946), Keep Moving, 1934, oil on canvas, 30 1/4 x 40 1/8 inches. Brigham Young University Museum of Art, 1937.
Nearly a century and a half ago, Maynard Dixon was born on January 24. Maynard Dixon is most famously recognized as a painter of the American Southwest landscape based on his nearly half-century experience living in and travelling through Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico. However, he diverted from his typical subject matter to create his well-known series Forgotten Man and Strike. Keep Moving was inspired by a workers’ strike in San Francisco in 1934, after which riots broke out between police and strikers. Dixon conveys fear, distrust, and frustrations through heads that hang down, heavy shoulders, and a dark earthy palette. While Dixon’s works from nearly a full century ago are a product of his time, the themes he explores in all his works are easily relatable to audiences today. The Museum of Art boasts the largest single collection of Maynard Dixon paintings.