Maynard and Edith Hamlin Dixon House and Studio facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Maynard and Edith Hamlin Dixon House and Studio
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 Location in Utah
Location in the United States
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| Location | U.S. Route 89, Mount Carmel, Utah |
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| Built | 1939 |
| NRHP reference No. | 01001450 |
| Added to NRHP | January 11, 2002 |
The Maynard and Edith Hamlin Dixon House and Studio is a special home and art studio in Mount Carmel, Utah. It used to belong to two famous artists, Maynard Dixon and Edith Hamlin. Maynard Dixon was well-known for his beautiful landscape paintings of the American West.
He moved to Mount Carmel in 1939 after marrying Edith Hamlin. Edith was a talented muralist from San Francisco, California. The Dixons spent their summers at this home and their winters in Tucson, Arizona.
Maynard Dixon passed away in 1946. Edith brought his ashes back to their Mount Carmel home. Soon after, Edith built a painting studio on the property. She created many of her own important artworks there. In 1963, Edith Dixon sold the home to watercolor artist Milford Zornes. He sometimes used the studio too. This historic property is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is open for people to visit.
Contents
Meet the Artists: Maynard and Edith Dixon
Maynard Dixon's Early Life and Art
Maynard Dixon was born in 1875 in Fresno, California. He started training as an artist in the early 1890s. For many years, he worked as a successful illustrator.
Dixon loved the amazing scenery of the American West. He began painting its landscapes in styles like tonalism and impressionism. In the 1920s, his art style changed to Precisionism. This was influenced by his wife at the time, Dorothea Lange. Many of Dixon's paintings showed Native Americans. He sometimes lived on their reservations and in the wild lands around them.
Edith Hamlin and Their Marriage
Edith Hamlin was a well-known muralist from San Francisco, California. Maynard Dixon married Edith in 1937. Before he passed away in 1946, over 200 of Dixon's artworks were shown in museums and art galleries.
The Dixon Home in Mount Carmel
Why Mount Carmel?
The Dixons moved to Mt. Carmel, Utah in 1939. Maynard had first visited the area in 1933. He had already painted several pictures of the small town.
Mount Carmel was also a great place to start trips to Zion National Park. This park inspired many of his most popular artworks. Maynard planned to return to Mount Carmel almost as soon as he married Edith. They bought land next to their home. They built a wine cellar and a guesthouse there.
Life at the Home
The Dixons spent their summers at the Mount Carmel home. They would spend their winters in Tucson, Arizona. Maynard Dixon last visited the home in 1945. His health was getting worse from emphysema. This forced him to stay in Tucson that summer. He passed away in his Tucson home on November 11, 1946.
Edith's Studio and the Home's Legacy
The year after Maynard passed, Edith buried his ashes under a large rock at the Mount Carmel home. She also placed a memorial plaque there. Edith continued to spend summers at the Mount Carmel home. In 1948, she added a large painting studio.
Edith remarried in 1951 and moved back to San Francisco in 1953. She sold the property to her friend, the famous watercolor artist Milford Zornes. Zornes sometimes used the studio for his own artworks. Later, he sold the house to the Bingham family. They carefully fixed up the building and the property.
About the House and Grounds
The Main House and Other Buildings
The main house is a one-and-a-half-story log home. It has a strong stone foundation. The roof has steep gables and a tall chimney. The windows are double-hung. The top floor has a balcony. You can reach the top floor by an outside staircase at the back of the house.
The garage also has a steep gabled roof. This was where the Dixons first lived while their main house was being built. Edith's studio is a simple, one-story building with two rooms. The guesthouse was originally a log home. A flagstone part was added to it in the late 1940s or early 1950s.
The wine and fruit cellar is built into a hillside west of the house. It has shelves built right into the walls. An outhouse was built in 1939 south of the main house. The house now has indoor plumbing.
Special Spots on the Property
A path from the studio leads to Maynard Dixon's memorial. This memorial is still on a hill. East of the studio is a large rock with Maynard's initials carved into it. This was one of his favorite places.
The entire property was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2002. You can take self-guided tours or guided tours of the grounds. A donation is requested to help maintain this special place.
