HawkStrong: Paige Deon’s artwork displayed at Ann Arbor Art Fair for 2nd year
HFC alumna Paige Deon has displayed and sold her artwork at the Ann Arbor Art Fair for the past two years.
“This year I did the best I’ve ever done at an art fair! I sold lots of originals and probably close to 200 prints. Things got so hectic, there would be people waiting in line at my booth!” said Deon, of Woodhaven.
The Ann Arbor Art Fair is a competitive international art fair that was established in 1960. It takes place annually in Ann Arbor during the third week of July. More than 400,000 visitors attend each year.
“I was so surprised when I got in last year. I applied knowing it was not likely I would get in. Honestly, I thought it was a fluke, so I was still surprised when I got in this year too. It gave me more confidence in myself as an artist. It made me realize my paintings and art style are good enough for such a premier art fair,” she explained.
Deon will apply again next year.
“I enjoy seeing so many cool artists from all around the world,” she said. “I also love getting to see people buy my art and ask me questions.”
“I don’t think I would be in art fairs if I didn’t attend HFC”
Alongside fellow HFC grads and artists Michael George and Erin Hoekzema, Deon’s artistry was showcased at the Wyandotte Street Art Fair earlier this summer.
“It was great being there with them. We kept each other updated on how the fair was going for each of us,” she recalled. “I remember going to the Wyandotte Street Art Fair growing up, so it was pretty cool to display my art there.”
Deon's passion for art was stoked by her experiences at HFC, including the support and encouragement of her mentor, HFC Faculty Chair of Fine and Performing Arts Steve Glazer. She also credits HFC fine arts instructors Nemanja Rosic and Anne Garavaglia (now retired) for their positive influences.
“It was definitely a big step forward in my art career to attend HFC,” said Deon. “I don’t think I would be in art fairs each summer if I didn’t attend HFC. I definitely got the push to enter art fairs from Steve. I learned how to oil paint from Nemanja, which is one of my main mediums now.”
Glazer is proud of his former student.
“Paige started asking me about art fairs at the beginning of her last semester at the College,” he recalled. “This is a huge step for a young woman at the age of 20. She was juried into a number of art fairs last summer, doing her first one just days after turning 21. Working mostly in a studio she set up in her basement, she sells ceramics at some art fairs and paintings at others. Paige is now in her second year of going to major arts fairs and loves doing this type of work.”
Professors cared so much about her success
Born in Dearborn, Deon is the second of four children and the only daughter. She is a graduate of Woodhaven High School in Brownstown Charter Township. She graduated from HFC in 2022, earning her associate degree in studio art. She completed coursework at Hope College and the College for Creative Studies.
“I started doing some research and found HFC,” said Deon. “It was very affordable and they had the types of classes and degree program I wanted to pursue at the time.”
At first, Deon wanted to get her time at the College over with as soon as she could, but her perspective changed after completing three classes:
“I was so into everything I was learning!” recalled Deon. “I never had such great, proactive professors who cared so much about me succeeding. It made me so excited to go to classes everyday, which hadn’t really happened before. I learned so much in that first fall semester that still helps me with my art today, techniques I learned from Nemanja Rosic and Anne Garavaglia and the push from Steve Glazer. These three teachers definitely inspired me. They each taught me the basics in both mediums I use and helped push me to keep improving and working at it.”
Deon’s primary media are oil painting and ceramics. Her secondary media are gouache painting and ballpoint pen drawing. Since October 2022, she has been a dog groomer to support her art career.
“If I weren't an artist, I would’ve become a veterinarian, so dog grooming was perfect for me,” she said. “I currently work at the Allen Park Pet Spa and I love it.”
No limits, and not close to her full potential
Deon started drawing seriously since she was 12.
“Back then, I don’t think I could’ve known I would be here today, but it was the thing I enjoyed the most,” said Deon. “I kept at it even through high school and started to experiment with other mediums like painting, but I was kind of stuck without anyone pushing me to do better. I think I really knew I was going to be an artist after I reconnected with my boyfriend, Dylan Miklaski. We found our way back together at the start of our senior year. He really pushed me to pursue this seriously and gave me a different outlook on what my life could be. I’m not sure I would be here selling my art and improving each day if I hadn’t reconnected with him back then.”
Rosic remembered having Deon in his Advanced Projects class, which focuses on individualized, advanced projects in the student’s area of concentration. In Deon’s case, it was painting.
“I had the privilege to oversee Paige painting a series of pieces depicting figures in staged architectural interiors, reminiscent of the lifestyle magazine ads from the 1960s and 1970s,” said Rosic. “The underlying theme was an examination of the late modern and post-modern suburban interior design and its presence in daily life. Her project produced a quite stunning visual series. Paige, an accomplished ceramicist, successfully demonstrated her versatility in an art medium different from her major with skill, fluency, and formidable intellectual mastery. We in the HFC Art department have been quite lucky to have Paige Deon as our student.”
For Deon, the best part about being an artist is creating exactly what she wants.
“I will put my own reference photos together and try out new things all the time, I feel like there are no limits and I haven’t yet even reached my full potential,” she said. “My career goal is to live off of making the art I want to make, selling it online, doing art fairs, and one day I hope to have a studio and retail space.”
She continued: “In 10 years, I could see myself doing art in my own home studio or even having a commercial building to work in and sell my artwork. By then, I would really love to be able to live and pay my bills off with my art and be surrounded by lots of pets.”
