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abstract objects.

"Barns continue to draw me and are the main vehicle I use for expression through color, pattern, and form. I see barns first for their color and form as abstraction, second for their iconic representation. In fact, their iconic stature both informs and is informed by my treatment of them."

O’Meara works in multiple mediums such as high resolution combined c-prints, photo collaged pigment prints with encaustic, and casein paintings. “Right now I’m working with photo-collaged pigment prints, pure powdered pigments and encaustic to create my mixed media work.

I enjoy working with the encaustic because it gives me the ability to create depth and expressive texture after the intense level of precision I employ in getting a high level of detail while photographing the barns. When photographing the barns, I shoot multiple photos (anywhere from 20 to 120 photos) in a grid, which I then composite to create the pigment print as the basis of the work. The encaustic paint comes next, after which I rub powdered pigments into the wax and then fuse the pigments into the surface of the wax with a butane torch. This creates layers of color; and the refracted light from the surface of the print below combines with the layers of wax and pigment to glow with brilliant luminosity. I then finish with a glaze of oil stick on top in areas of highlights and shadows, again fusing with heat. I custom make all my frames using either reclaimed wood or vintage windows and doors."

Jennifer OMeara has been creating a body of work since 1991 that includes large-scale photographic c-prints, archival pigment prints, and mixed media encaustic and casein paintings depicting scenes of rural America. For over two decades the artist has traveled the back roads of the U.S. for inspiration, where she finds the barns, buildings and landscapes that most often become her subjects. Her studio was the third of its kind in 1990 (After Graham Nash and Harvest Productions) to pioneer digital printmaking techniques for large-scale fine art photography.