Nebraska

Master of Professional Studies, Art Therapy, Pratt Institute, NY, 1992

BA, Early Childhood Education, St. Andrews College, NC, 1975

The art I make is strongly influenced by my childhood, where I lived in the woods of Texas. I spent hours gathering, arranging and hiding treasures, such as sticks, feathers and rocks, among the trees. From a very early age, I worked in empty defined spaces to create something new.

I work in old boxes. I am fascinated by their untold histories, their scent and the way they look and feel. I combine old paper, handmade books, maps, objects and photographs-all poignant fragments of someone’s story. I incorporate encaustic wax, an ancient technique used by Greek artisans, into each piece.

The space within each box becomes a little world that the viewer is invited to enter and explore. I am intrigued by the metaphors of hidden places, layers and openings. It is my hope that this work will inspire others to question and examine their own private worlds. Themes in my work are birth, re-birth, death, transformation and the struggle to make meaning of the journey.

My art is greatly impacted by my career as an art therapist, much of which I have spent working with patients and their families at Children’s Hospital and Medical Center in Nebraska.

Janet Eskridge