ACRYLIC, CRUSHED MINERALS ON WOOD PANEL COLORADO, USA Manchester-born artist Sarah Winkler has lived in various countries, from Malawi to Norway, with her experiences in stunning geological landscapes influencing her artwork. Winkler's Colorado studio sits atop a 9,000ft peak, where she creates contemporary mountainscapes inspired by her studies in Studio Art and Earth Science at William Paterson University. She uses crushed minerals and maintains a collage aesthetic in her work, which has been showcased at the Cosmopolitan Hotel of Las Vegas and in over 100 prominent collections worldwide. Winkler is represented in US and Canadian galleries and has participated in exhibitions such as Bakersfield Museum of Art and Art Aspen. She is involved in the US Department of State's Art in Embassies program and has been recognized as a top rising female painter by ARTSY. Winkler's work has been featured in various publications and in the documentary 'Moment' by Making Art Films. Method Just as the earth’s geological formations present a layered landscape, so, too, does my artwork. A forced horizon line depicts the hidden geology below ground that creates the reality above it. I mimic the geological processes of erosion and deposition in mountain building by applying acrylic paint onto wood panels, then removing it by a variety of means like sanding back through layer after layer to mimic glacial friction lines. I often incorporate crushed minerals that I collect from the landscape into the paintings. To blend Earth’s ancestral pigments with the modern pigment and rekindle the ancient language between the environment and the creative depiction of it. Through the paintings, I can share the same love of wild spaces and conservation of wilderness to others that I have. Born in Manchester, England, I spent a good portion of my childhood in Africa and Borneo, where I experienced the intimate relationship people had with wildlife and the land. I learned, at an early age, that nature is special. That we have to love something to care for it, and that’s the element I’m trying to convey in the paintings: care and appreciation. A more contemporary approach allows for concepts, like conservation, geology, ecology, to be passed through the painting to expand our understanding of the fundamental aspect of the human experience in nature and to allow viewers to interact with the landscape in new ways. You get a sense of where it is, but there’s much left open that you can bring your own sense of wonder, story and connection to the places depicted. These layered landscapes are reflections about land, time and process with a focus on subjects that define the Pacific and Mountain West region. To continue learning about this incredible artist, read more on our blog page here.