Meditations on Nature: Encaustic Works by Barbara Walton

Marzen has been invited to curate a summer exhibition at Bos Meadery’s spacious tasting room. For the month of July you can catch Barbara Walton’s unique encaustic work at the Meadery.

Barbara Walton’s mastery of the encaustic medium and her interest in sustainability has launched a unique collaborative project between herself and the science department at the University of Iowa. Since 2005 they have been working to develop an alternative to the commonly used beeswax or petrol based microcrystalline wax using experimental soy based waxes. She initiated this collaboration with the intention of creating a wax that embodies the desirable characteristics of the more commonly used encaustic waxes but is also much more sustainably produced in comparison. This directly relates with the artist’s choice in subjects and reflects her beliefs on humankind’s connection with the world around them. Her works generally portray, in a rather poetic fashion, her belief that nature is a strong and active force in our lives. We are not separate from nature but rather one with it. Walton’s work is deeply meditative while simultaneously capturing a great deal movement in her horses, birds, bees, plants and elegant layered mandalas.