Maynard Dixon painted American scenes and landscapes at a time of great national uncertainty and upheaval. In his painting No Place to Go, Dixon utilizes compositional elements such as the subject matter, positioning of lines, and color to convey tones of disenchantment and quiet despair. By creating these tones through the amalgamation of various artistic movements, Dixon effectively portrays America’s disillusionment with the American Dream during the Great Depression, thus challenging the reality of the promise of happiness and prosperity that for so long defined an American ideal.
A closer look at Dixon’s life and career can aid in a greater comprehension of the disillusioned sentiment expressed in No Place to Go. Examining the significant events in his life as well as the art movements to which he adhered is particularly helpful in interpreting the social ideals challenged in the painting.
Dixon was born in Fresno, California to a family of aristocratic Virginians, and in his youth he was encouraged to hone his natural proficiency for writing and drawing (Wikipedia, “Maynard Dixon”). [Click here for a more detailed account of Dixon's life and works.] His mentor, Charles Lummis, encouraged Dixon to leave California to paint “the real West” (Sublette). As Dixon crisscrossed the Western United States, his paintings reflected many elements of the Regionalist movement. Several components of Regionalism can be detected in No Place to Go, most notably in the way that Dixon depicts the figure in a realistic manner with a subtle celebration of the man’s middle-American appearance. No Place to Go also exhibits elements representative of other art movements. Hints of Modernism are seen in the simplification of the composition of the landscape; rather than including close details of the surrounding hills and ocean, Dixon simply gives the suggestion of the basic forms of the land. Done in 1935, the painting is perhaps among Dixon’s most well known involvements in the Social Realism movement, as can be seen by the subdued colors and the overall theme of disappointment and loneliness that the work conveys. The personal forlornness of the painting is magnified with the view that Dixon and his social photographer wife Dorothea Lange, who encouraged him to chronicle the ills of the Great Depression, separated in the same year (Wikipedia). With a greater understanding of the art movements and events that influenced Dixon’s aesthetic choices, the task of interpreting the significance of his artwork becomes simpler.
Through his use of the subject matter and setting of the painting, Dixon effectively communicates to the viewer the despairing situation not only of the figure in the painting but also of the nation as a whole during the Great Depression. The man in the painting is the dominant focus; his downcast face and defeated stance immediately tell of his difficult situation. The knapsack on his back suggests that he has made a long journey, and the slight shabbiness and worn-out quality of his appearance imply that the journey has been made in pursuit of better circumstances. Although the man is painted realistically, his face is generic and rather impersonal, which allows viewers to project their own images, or the identity of society as a whole, into the situation. The man is leaning against a forlorn fence set among barren hills that border a flat, lifeless ocean in the background. The coastal setting of the painting indicates that the man, beaten down and hopeless, has reached the end of the land—the West Coast of America. As the man has physically reached the limits of America, it appears that he has also reached the limits of the American Dream and is now without hope or options that might lead to prosperity. This suggestion of the end of the American Dream and the Myth of the West directly challenges the notion of the limitless possibilities that make up the fabric of the American experience.
The compositional lines of No Place to Go also contribute to the painting’s message of the frustrated ideals of the time period. In the painting, the lines, particularly those that form the landscape, serve as a way to focus the attention of the viewer upon certain key elements of the painting that in turn convey the tones and meaning of the work. After the viewer focuses on the downcast figure, his or her eye is attracted to the sloping line of the fence, which recedes down the hill and out of view. This dwindling line suggests that the man no longer has any specific destination to work toward and is trapped in a kind of prison of no options—the trail that he has been following in his pursuit of happiness has gone cold. After the eye follows the sloping line of the fence to its dead end, the rolling silhouette of the hill beyond attracts attention, connoting yet another barrier impeding the man’s way. Finally, the flat, rigid demarcation of the shimmering sea and monotonous sky draws the eye to the upper-right corner of the painting and reminds the viewer that the Myth of the West, which for centuries promised prosperity to those who ventured into the western expanse of the America, ends with the limits of the continent against the endless expanse of the ocean. This sentiment of bitter limitations exposes the frustrations and disappointments experienced by many Americans with hopes of new horizons during the Great Depression.
The use of color and light in the painting also contribute to the tones of disappointed hopes and a loss of faith in the American Dream. Dixon utilizes exaggerated shadows and colors that are slightly stylized in a manner that subtly but effectively perpetuates the feeling of disenchantment. Unlike many of his other landscapes, No Place to Go contains mostly subdued hues, a stylistic choice that lends to the despairing mood of the piece. The only color that jumps out in the painting is the golden field in the foreground. This richly colored piece of land is reminiscent of the idyllic American landscape and is set in contrast to the somber and defeated tones present in the rest of the painting. As the elongated, eye-catching shadows of the painting set on the scene, they also represent the end of the golden view of the ideal of the American Dream.
Throughout Maynard Dixon’s painting No Place to Go, the artist utilizes various compositional choices, especially the subject matter, setting, lines, and color, to demonstrate the feelings of disenchantment and melancholy that questioned the validity of the American Dream during the Great Depression and exposed the seriousness and disappointment which defined that era. No Place to Go serves as a compelling commentary on the personal despair and hopelessness that came about partly because of the overextension of the ideal of American Dream. Because of the universal themes and emotions that the work addresses, the painting becomes a poignant glimpse into the personal turmoil during a hopeless situation as well as a powerful critique of the reality of the American Dream during the Great Depression. As I pondered over some of the aesthetic and cultural implications of the painting, I was able to more greatly appreciate the work and style of Maynard Dixon, and I understood more fully how the disillusionment of the Great Depression led many Americans to lose hope in the promise of prosperity and happiness. When considering that the work was painted during a time of both national and personal turmoil, No Place to Go serves as a powerful challenge of the values that shape American society as well as an intimate glimpse into the artist’s own private despondency.
Works Cited
Maynard Dixon. Wikipedia. 6 Oct. 2010. Wikipedia Foundation. 18 Oct. 2010.
Sublette, J. Mark. "Maynard Dixon Biography." 19 Oct 2010.
