Jane Forth
Artist's Statement—My work has a strong reference to the Blue Ridge Mountains where I live. Whether the powerful green of a still July day or the soft umbers under crimson skies of winter, the beauty of atmosphere and dynamic changes in light illuminate. Painting with ancient techniques of encaustic medium -- beeswax and pigment—I believe expressive of nature’s character and the alchemy of heated wax possesses its own inherent magic. I most often find a complex journey in painting this way that I think creative -- for molten wax influences accidents and changes in direction.
As I travel around to places near my home I am always taking visual notes of how it appears and I work usually from memory and imagination. I also go out and sketch but usually I find myself working on how energistically it feels, not a representation. Although the places I paint are on the map, I believe imagination from my many years of living in the Blue Ridge takes over early on for I find a compelling and entrancing beauty expressed in the dreamlike presence of these mountains –as if they speak of their ancient legends. www.janeforth.com
Biography—Jane Forth has lived in the northern Virginia Blue Ridge since 1978. Originally from Washington DC, she began exhibiting work in Washington in 1975, after a study in sculpture at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and earning a BFA in painting from the University of Pennsylvania. She has continued to exhibit work in greater Washington DC as well as Virginia. Her work that draws stylistically from both western and eastern art traditions is also influenced by insights as a biodynamic gardener for the connections of nature in earth and cosmos.
Marilyn Hayes
Artist's Statement—The images in the encaustic monotypes in this exhibition are memories and imaginary inner reflections of significant features in the environments/locations where I live or have visited. The power and energy of certain features in the landscapes -- the hills, mountains, skies, clouds, and water fascinate me. Working in encaustic wax monotypes enables me to transfer the essence of what I have seen or heard from my unconscious memory to the images in the prints. The bold color and movement in the work reflect my sensory and imaginary experiences and the swirling energy of the natural world.
The work in this exhibition reflects my love of and connection with nature, especially in the Blue Ridge foothills and my experiences and the unseen power and energy of the natural features of places I have visited.
Biography—Marilyn Hayes lives in Arlington, VA and has a second home place in Madison County, VA in the foothills of the Blue Ridge. She has been exhibiting her work since 1999 after studying at the Washington Studio School and continues exhibiting in the greater Washington DC area as well as in Virginia.
