John
Dawson
According to his family members, John Dawson was already drawing
at the age of three. He can’t recall a time when
he didn’t know that art would be his life. Although his
love of the outdoors took a while longer to develop, both art
and nature quickly became integral parts of his work. But it
has only been in the last decade that he has come into his own,
gaining recognition as a fine "natural history artist."
After graduation from the Art Center School in Los Angeles,
Dawson "paid his dues" at the Phillips Ramsey Advertising
Agency in San Diego before deciding to follow his muse to
the Sawtooth Mountains of the Wood River Valley in Idaho.
There he experienced some tough early freelance years. Only
after trips to New York, Boston and Washington D.C. did Dawson
secure enough support to make a living doing what he loved.
Since then the artist has painted animals and birds for articles,
posters, nature guides, first-class postage stamps and even
zoo signs, for such prestigious establishments as the National
Geographic, the Audubon Society, the National Park Serice,
the National Wildlife Federation and the U.S. Postal Service,
among others. All his works display a meticulous attention
to detail, supported by extensive research, interviews, personal
experience in the field and eighteen-hour days at the drawing
board.
Although inspired by the remarkable terrain of the West,
Dawson traded that environment for the tropical rain forests
of Hawaii after a recent assignment in America’s fiftieth
state. He has settled there with his wife, Kathy and has opened
his mind to a new wealth of art, possibilities and challenges.
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