Dorothy M. Danforth

Private & Commission Work

I am a classically trained fine artist who has recently returned to her first love after a long career in tech. I attend ateliers in the US, Paris, and Vienna and work in the tradition of classical realism in graphite, charcoal, oil, and watercolor. After years away I am back at the easel, learning, and creating work that matters to me.

What I am really after is qualia: the inner life of a subject, the particular quality of presence that makes a thing itself and not something else. The expression behind the eye, the weight of a living creature, the moment a subject reveals something true about itself. I choose subjects I genuinely connect with and find interesting. I work to render truthfully while interpreting freely enough to pull out personality and essence with sensitivity.

Qualia is by definition elusive and that is exactly the point. I will never capture it. The joy is in the pursuit.

Commissions occasionally accepted. Inquiries welcome.

Painting

Oil and watercolor work exploring still life and the figure. Informed by an interest in light, shadow, and the “presence” of objects in a room. Work shown is “American Music,” using an allegory of music bust and an apple as a play on the Violent Femmes song of the same name. I was exploring a red, white, and blue palette in a classical still life.

Drawing

Drawing is where my intention is most visible. I work in graphite and charcoal to achieve realism as the focus and let the rest loosen into something more gestural and felt. Work shown is a study of a master work by Scott Waddell for a class at Grand Central Atelier. I interpreted his softer, rounder very high-skill atelier style into my own more gestural approach.

Portraiture

People, animals, and creatures of all kinds. I am most interested in the face as a window rather than a surface, and in the particular aliveness that makes a subject themselves. Work shown is a quick sketch of my nephew when he was a toddler. I had a reference photo but wanted to capture his inquisitive and sensitive nature more than try to replicate the photo.

About Little House Studio

Little House Studio is my backyard studio in Abington, PA. The kids nicknamed it “Little House” when they were very young. A garden home to my art and the Little House Flock, a small band of bantam chickens with outsized personalities. The Little House Flock card series celebrates each bird by name, in watercolor, with all the dignity they deserve.

Contact Dorothy