A North Carolina artist whose portfolio of abstract encaustic paintings is filled with color, Mary Farmer draws people into her illusory art. First, they want to touch the paintings, to get a personal feeling for the depth of the layers and seductive surfaces. Upon further viewing, people notice that the colors appear to be moving and gesturing. Continued viewing helps the observers to see how the encaustic layers interact. They are finally left with the impression that Mary's artwork is truly animate, ever fluid and changing right before their eyes.
Drawn by the depth that is achieved by applying numerous layers of the medium, Mary works primarily in encaustic. In a unique approach, she will often layer in other materials, such as handmade paper and fabrics, to add another dimension to her paintings. A physical painter, Mary enjoys laboring over her work and the bold color and gesture in her paintings reflect this attention to detail. She often works in series to express her ideas more comprehensively.
