In 1936, at the age of 18,[2] Dahlov married Adolph Ipcar, a 30 year old man hired to tutor her in math for her college tests.

[3] They spent that year in New York City, with Adolph working as a math tutor while Dahlov taught art two days a week.

[3] They became modern-day subsistence farmers: growing their own food, raising animals and their two sons, and selling eggs and milk on the side for extra money.

While her art in general might be described as wild colors and cheerful, her writings for adults turn to a darker, almost grim intertwining of reality and fantasy.

[3] In addition to easel paintings, illustrations, and soft sculptures, Dahlov completed ten large-scale mural projects for public buildings, two of them for U.S. post offices in La Follette, Tennessee, and Yukon, Oklahoma.

Golden Savanna, a 21-ft. mural of African wildlife, can be seen in the atrium of the Shriners Hospital for Crippled Children in Springfield, Massachusetts.