Domino Sugars, 2023, Photography, 16 x 20 inches

Ethan Dixon

Ethan Dixon is an artist from Silver Spring, Maryland. He has loved being creative all his life and aims to make such a statement within his work. Montgomery County has a lot of different cultures, and Ethan used the area's lively arts scene as both a playground and a source of ideas for his art. As a studio arts major, Ethan's work shows not only technical skill but also a deep love for making things, from his childhood drawings to the more complex strokes of his current projects. He is ready to paint a story that spans time and medium in his post-college artistic pursuit.


Periculum

 I go on my creative journey with a voracious curiosity for information and a penchant for trying new things. The mesmerizing interplay of colors, shapes, and textures in many mediums has always captivated me, and this is why I opted to major in studio arts. The freedom to experiment is the key to unlocking new possibilities in photography, which I find to be a fascinating field for my creativity. 

I was brought up to believe that a work of art should leave the viewer feeling fulfilled and content in order to be considered "complete." Time and again, I questioned whether or not my work was adequate to convey the idea, while the problem was actually with the thinking itself. In this series, I decided to try something different. I was able to think freely and make whatever I wanted to when I went on a walk around Baltimore and took images along the way. Even though I had no idea how my film would turn out, I decided to go ahead and draw my story set in the city I now call home.

 I wanted to enjoy the process of making this series, so I built a lot of room for experimentation and fun into it. Walking about Baltimore made me feel liberated and content; the pictures in my head suddenly had no significance, as they should have. I hoped that people would stop what they were doing and think about the shot, ask questions, and maybe even come up with their own narrative to the picture. I feel that art strives when you're not focused on what is supposed to be made in the end, instead being focused on what is being established in the now.