About Pat Dunning

Artist Statement

My paintings are a reflection, a meditation on my life’s physical, psychological and spiritual experiences.  I believe in letting these experiences, and the immediate dynamics of the creative process itself, define my art.  Subconsciously, I explore beyond the immediate surface of the canvas to reach deeper mind images, which are revealed to me through the creative process. For me, this process resembles a trance-like state.  I begin by just plunging in with a strong emotion dictated by the recent events in my life, and the whole process of painting becomes a subconscious action in which I am just an observer, and secondarily a participant of the work.  In essence, “the painting paints itself”.

About Pat Dunning

My educational background in art, professional experience and organizations, exhibitions, memberships, and art-related experiences are as follows:

Educational Background
Studied fine arts at the University of Pittsburg; but my Ph.D. is in Communications/Psychology. I chose this field because as a single parent, I couldn’t raise my children with a degree in art and because I’ve always been fascinated with the workings of the mind. I also studied art at the Art Institute of Chicago, and exhibited in the Institute’s student shows. In addition, as a student of art, I visited and studied art at the Louve in Paris, and the Tate Museum in London.

Professional Experience
Chair of the Humanities Department and Professor of Art at Southeastern University in Washington, DC where I lectured on the masterpieces on site at various DC art museums.

Director and Juror of the East Liberty Arts Festival; Founder and Director of The Artists Gallery; Taught public and private art classes; and a guest lecturer in art – all in Pittsburgh, PA

Professional Organizations/Memberships
Current:
Seacoast Artists’ Guild of South Carolina, Inc. 
Waccamaw Arts & Crafts Guild, Myrtle Beach, SC

Past:
International Artists’ Support Group (IASG), Washington, DC
Artists Equity, Washington DC
Museum of Women in the Arts, Wasington, DC
Washington Project for the Arts/Corcoran Art Gallery, Washington, DC
Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), Georgetown, DC
Foundry Gallery, Washington, DC
Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington DC
Rockville Arts Center, Rockville, MD
Arlington Arts Center, Arlington , VA
Capitol Hill Art League, Washington, DC
Group One, Pittsburgh, PA
The Artists’ Gallery, Pittsburgh, PA
Fine Arts Group, Pittsburgh, PA