Biography

Dixie Selden (1868-1935): was an American artist. She studied with Frank Duveneck, who was a mentor and significant influence, and William Merritt Chase, who introduced her to Impressionism. Selden painted portraits of Americans and made genre paintings, landscapes and seascapes from her travels within the country and to Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Mexico. She helped found and was twice the president of the Women's Art Club of Cincinnati. Her works have been exhibited in the United States. She was one of the Daughters of the American Revolution and on the Social Register.
A Covington resident and noted artist. Dixie Selden was born on February 28, 1868 in Ohio to John Roger Selden and Martha Peyton McMillen Selden. The Selden family moved to Covington in 1870. The family lived on West 4th Street. Her education was received at Miss Virginia Simpson’s Private School in Covington, Miss Clara E. Nourse’s Select School for Girls in Cincinnati and the Bartholomew English and Classical School for Girls in Cincinnati. Her love for art led her to attend the McMicken School of Design in Cincinnati in 1885 (later evolved into the Cincinnati Art Academy). Among her teachers at the Academy were Frank Duveneck and Henry Farny. Duveneck grew very fond of her and called her “the little one,” due to diminutive stature. Selden’s first exhibit was held in 1890 at the Covington Art Club.
Dixie Selden traveled extensively throughout Europe. Her trips took her to Italy, France, England, Germany and many other European nations. Selden also traveled to Mexico, Japan, the Middle East and China She drew great inspiration from these trips and always returned with sketches and paintings.
Selden helped found and was twice president of the Women’s Art Club of Cincinnati, member of the Covington Art Club, the Southern States Artists Association, the McDowell Society, the National Association of Women Artists and Sculptors, and the National Art Club (New York City). She was one of the Daughters of the American Revolution and on the Social Register.
Selden quickly gained a reputation for her fine portraits and lively landscapes. Her work was exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, New York Academy of Art, and the Cincinnati Art Museum and many others. Dixie Selden’s work can be found in the permanent collections of the Butler Institute of American Art, Cincinnati Art Museum, Covington Art Club, Johnson Collection, Spartanburg, South Carolina, Kenton County Public Library, Kentucky, Kentucky State Historical Society and the Miami University Art Museum.