Dori Fletcher has been making art almost her entire life. She has been a commercial fashion illustrator, a professional portrait painter, and a painter of landscapes, animals, and other subjects. On Sunday, she begins a one-woman show at The Art Center in Dumas.
“It is a little bit of everything,” she said on Tuesday, taking a break from hanging pictures. “I have an interest in landscape, people, animals, everything.” She will have 75 paintings in the exhibition, many oils, but also acrylics and water colors. She said she has been working on the pieces for two years to get ready for what will be, despite years as a professional artist, her first solo exhibition. “I am excited. … Surely there is something that someone is going to fall in love with,” she said laughing.
Fletcher moved to Roswell, New Mexico last year, but for decades she lived in Amarillo. She worked as a fashion illustrator — freelance and for Colberts, once one of the largest department stores in Amarillo. She also painted portraits on commission, something she is still willing to do, though she took a break from it for a while. She will have several portraits in this show. “She has some amazing portraits,” said Marti Christman, director of The Art Center.
While she was doing commercial art professionally, she began painting landscapes and other subjects and started attending workshops by established artists Guido Frick, Jack Sorenson, Carolyn Anderson, and others. “I always enjoyed those workshops.” She read, studied, and painted, building up a portfolio of work that she exhibited on a limited basis. She partnered with artist Beth Thomas in a gallery in Sunset Center and sold works here and there.
Though her parents were not particularly artistic, Fletcher, who grew up in Nebraska, said she has always been interested in art. “It has always been fun to me. … It makes me feel good.”
Fletcher likes to paint outdoor landscapes. For several years, she was part of a group of artists who took their paints and easels once a month to Palo Duro Canyon to sit, enjoy nature, and paint. But she does many of her works from photographs she has taken to freeze the view and avoid the changing light and weather. “I like for it to look outdoors. … Goal outdoors is difficult. Everything changes.”
She is always on the hunt for subjects. “The colors and the way the light hits it and the shadows” are what inspires her. There are several photos of sunsets in Roswell waiting for her when she gets back to her studio. “Those colors are just wonderful.”
“It is a beautiful show,” said Christman. “Just a great variety of subjects, techniques, and media.”
Artist Johnna Luther, who had a solo exhibition at The Art Center in March, happened to be at the center Monday while Fletcher’s work was being hung. After looking at some of the pieces, she made an effort to find Fletcher and introduce herself. “I love your work,” she said.
Fletcher’s Dumas show begins with a reception on Sunday from 2 to 4 pm at The Art Center at 1810 South Dumas Avenue. The show hangs until November 18.
Construction on the south end of Dumas Avenue is moving along, and access to The Art Center is improving.
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