Article
"About our Guest Artist...Mickey Baxter"
The Broadmoor is a magnificent five star hotel built in 1918. It is nestled under azure blue skies in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, at the base of Pikes Peak in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Inside the hotel, covering ceilings and walls, you can see some of the most beautiful decorative painting in the country. Recently some refurbishing and an addition required the expertise of an artist who could capture the feel of the previous work and yet bring it into the twentieth century. The artist they chose for this prestigious task was Mickey Baxter, a talented freehand decorative artist.
Mickey has sketched and painted since her childhood in Indiana. She recalls drawing her schoolmates during class which often got her into trouble with her teachers. As an adult she began ceramic classes over twenty years ago, eventually owning her own shop for fifteen of those years. She taught classes in freehand decorating of ceramic and porcelain pieces. As her experience and reputation grew, she was sought after by other teachers and shop owners, so that the last four years of her teaching was devoted to this level of student.
Mickey's husband began his own hardware business along the way and soon needed Mickey's help. She was ready for a change, so Mickey sold her business to join her husband. She became involved to the point of not taking a vacation for five years. It was at her husband's urging to get away that brought her to Jackie Shaw's Studio in 1985.
When she walked though the doors of Jackie's grist mill home, she couldn't believe her eyes. She was enthralled with the most beautifully decorated walls she had ever seen! Mickey knew immediately that she had found the source for the rebirth of her love for painting, but she had no idea how much it would change her life. During her second trip to Jackie's, a friend remarked that she was going to start painting walls for a fee. It was like a door opening in a great rush for Mickey. She now knew the direction in which her time spent with Jackie was going to lead her.
Returning home to Indianapolis, Mickey put together a professional portfolio of design ideas, painted full size on illustration board, along with her practiced presentation. She then began telephoning interior design firms listed in the yellow pages, requesting an appointment. Her first presentation landed her a job when she was contracted to paint that same design firm's showroom. Contact with another firm with a group of designers, resulted in a 26 foot high faux finished wall in an office building. This, in turn, led to a job painting a geometric design throughout a professional office. And so it continued, each completed work leading to another, and Mickey's portfolio grew. In 1987, Mickey and her husband moved to Colorado Springs, where she immediately began seeking out design firms as she had previously. This time things did not fall into place as before. Over a two month period Mickey called on twenty design firms but never landed a contract. In fact, seven of these firms went out of business, shortly after Mickey had called on them. As discouraging as this was, she still persevered until she eventually landed a small commission. Once seen by others, the domino effect again brought her work as she built her reputation in her new home.
It was from this effort that The Broadmoor contacted her for an appointment. When Mickey showed her portfolio to the architect and head project designer, they liked her work so much they asked her to submit a bid and designs which met their budget and requirements. Mickey submitted one quarter size, fully painted designs for their review, basing her bid on past experience. The job was hers!
The results can be seen in the accompanying photos showing her beautiful work. Mickey painted six different areas within the hotel. Among them are two nine foot by thirty-four foot wall murals and two archways measuring thirteen feet by fifteen feet. The floor of the new aerobics center boasts a single rose, nine feet in length! All of her painting is done using Delta Ceramcoat Acrylics. Mickey said that she had started with Delta and continued to stay with it because of its outstanding coverage and durability as well as its unsurpassed color selection. The Broadmoor is adding a new ballroom, lounge, and guest wing. Their seven archways, 26' hallway, and foyer will give Mickey another rewarding and challenging painting experience.
