Contemporary, abstract, pastel drawing. Drawn on thick paper and unframed measures 4 1/2" x 9 1/2". Signed on the back, Bixler. Andrew Bixler is an an artist featured at the Creativity Explored Studio.

San Francisco native Andrew Bixler (b. 1981) joined the Creativity Explored studio in 2006. Bixler creates colored pencil and ink portraits of willowy characters accompanied by a brief explanatory text.

His direct statements of fact turn the outrageous in to the everyday, as Vikings, tree surgeons, magicians, the famous and the infamous all make an appearance. Bixler’s line is free flowing yet assured, and his palette is spare but energetic, seen most often in his portraits and his drawings of groups of objects (coffee cups, lemons, sunglasses) situated against a plain background.

Bixler’s practice is split between drawing and sculpture. His ceramic pieces take the form of his portraits with loosely worked, expressive proportions; while his renderings of animals in wire, accented with fabric and found objects, offer a beautiful, spectral counterpoint. A man of many talents, he also plays the piano and clarinet.

Bixler is the first artist to participate in CE’s new pilot program, in which CE provides artists the resources to start their own businesses. In addition, Bixler has been featured in numerous exhibitions at Creativity Explored.