‘Paintmobile’ comes to Mat-Su College

Artist Tom Nixon of Fairbanks is one of 15 artists from around the state who will teach workshops at the 2012 Machetanz Art Festival on the Matanuska-Susitna College campus June 2.

The Beginning Watercolor class, which Tom will teach, is from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the cost — including lunch — is $50, plus a small materials fee.

Tom will travel with his wife, Nelda, also a watercolor artist, in his RV dubbed the “Paintmobile.” Their motor home (aka “Harvey the RV”) is one of the tools of their trade. When traveling, they paint nearly every day. This is not too different from their daily routine, because at home, where they have a studio in their backyard, they also paint most every day.

Tom and Nelda are the recent recipients of the prestigious Fairbanks Arts Association and the Mayors of Interior Alaska Awards for the Arts in the category of “Arts and Leadership.” The winners were honored in March at Pioneer Park with a reception at Bear Gallery.

When he was a child and walked through the woods with his father, he explained to him all “about how nature worked,” Tom said. “I think that is probably the main reason I ended up as a landscape painter.”

He continues on his website to say that, “I moved to Alaska in 1984 and have been self-employed as a custom woodworker and dog sled builder. I have been drawing and painting professionally for the past decade. My bride, Nelda, and I share a studio where we teach classes in drawing and watercolor. Alaskan scenery, … artifacts and people are a constant source of joy and inspiration.”

The married team in the Paintmobile goes out of their way to get the most out of the great land and its people.

“Tom is planning a bicycle ride to Haines from Fairbanks the end of June, and I’ll drive the motor home (alongside). He figures it will take about 14 days,” Nelda said.

The Haines bicycle trip “will happen before the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival (which is) the middle of July,” she said.

Tom has been a popular artist in the summer festival in Fairbanks for many years, and it is an honor for him to be invited back year after year as a resident instructor for the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival.

Also to his credit, he has been accepted in the Fairbanks Arts Association 64th Parallel Juried Show, where he was bestowed both the Gallery Best of Show and the People’s Choice Award from the Fairbanks Watercolor Society.

The Machetanz Art Festival, which includes the Beginning Watercolor workshop with Tom, offers 20 visual art workshops for all skill levels. Some are half-day and some are all-day. These are open to high school students and adults.

There is still space available in Beginning Drawing, a workshop titled “Stick Figures and More,” with Don Kolstad of Anchorage; Intermediate Drawing with Gail Niebrugge of Palmer; Pastels with Judi Rideout of Palmer; Interior Design with Tiffany Staples of Eagle River; Intermediate Watercolor with Vladimir Zhikhartsev of Fairbanks and more. The featured artist this year is internationally known Judi Betts of Baton Rouge, La.

For more information about the Machetanz Art Festival or to register, visit matsu.alaska.edu or call 745-9755.

Guest writer Suzanne Bach is director of the Machetanz Art Festival for Mat-Su College and owner of Creative Design Studio. She can be reached at creative@alaska.com.