Dion Hitchings devoted his life to art.
An artist from a young age, Hitchings attended Washington University’s School of Fine Arts, and went on to work as a fashion illustrator, which led to art directing and fashion advertising, according to his artist biography. Tired of city living, Hitchings moved to Hunterdon County in 2001 and emerged a full-time artist.
“Emerging like a big bad butterfly,” Hitchings told NJTV’s Maddie Orton after he was named by Monmouth Museum as a featured emerging artist in 2016. “Beauty and fashion to trash, and one quick giant jump that took 56 years.”
Dion lived in Holland Township with his late husband, Robert Shive. As an artist, he was known for creating soulful portraits on recycled consumer boxes, work that was exhibited at galleries ranging from the Monmouth Museum in Middletown to Strange Planet Outsider Art Gallery in Chatham. He owned the Outsider Art Gallery in Frenchtown, and ran donation shows for the Trenton Soup Kitchen.
Dion and Robert’s home housed a vast art and toy collection that filled walls and spilled into the garden. Dion died Feb. 26, 2024, and Robert almost a month later on March 20.
Dion turned his lifelong passion into lasting impact by naming ArtYard as a beneficiary of his estate and art collection.
M.J. Stasak Jr. Auction & Appraisal Service is hosting an auction of The Dion Hitchings Art Antique & Toy Collection. Included in the auction are an autographed Billy Reddon 1972 Deliverance banjo, Gunthermann crawling clown wind-up toy, and J.A. Begay Navajo sand painting. Live bidding ends August 24.
Dion’s works are colorful, self-revealing, emotional, and childlike in spirit. Drawing inspiration from a variety of places, such as dreams, indigenous people, religion, animals, celebrities, and The Jerry Springer Show. Hitchings intentionally worked with nontraditional media, using children’s art supplies, including crayons, markers, and colored pens. Consumer boxes and other found objects served as a drawing surface that enabled him to break down the preexisting print, images, and textures, allowing the elements of the surface to organically become a part of the work.
“Within my artwork I have found my own ‘unique work’ which has no rules or boundaries,” Hitchings wrote in his artist statement. “During the creative process, I discovered the need to deconstruct then reconstruct the face to fit within the shape of the surface. The results are portraits that have shattered appearance with broken and missing pieces, but also form a more powerful, interesting, and often disturbing viewpoint.”
This August, during National Make-A-Will Month, we are reminded that creating a will is an important step toward protecting yourself and the people and causes that matter most to you. To learn how you can leave a lasting impact by including ArtYard in your legacy of giving, contact [email protected].
