Beth Walldorf

I have always been creative, but I can pinpoint the moment I became a visual artist. My sister, one of my biggest fans now, was always the artist growing up. When I was about ten, my sister remarked, “You’ll never be able to draw like me.” I took that as a personal challenge and began drawing people from the posters on my wall. I was blessed that my family encouraged my interest in art. Without them, I probably would not have attended college. I never thought I was cut out for it! I have since completed a Bachelor's, Master's, and Education Specialist degree. For over 20 years, I have worked in art education, inspiring my favorite artists - my students. I’m excited to have the time to nurture my creative career and look forward to sharing my voice with my community.

In my early years, I explored various mediums and subjects through realism. These included portraits, landscapes, and still lives. But I wanted to escape that safety net and truly find my voice. Recently, I have been challenging myself with abstraction, inspired by the works of Helen Frankenthaler and Georgia O’Keeffe. I enjoy playing with the transparency, opacity, and dimensional thickness of color, using techniques like dripping, pouring, and layering. I also incorporate modeling paste and collage elements for added texture. However, I always find myself returning to my roots, rendering the beauty of natural forms you may see in my botanicals. 

You'll notice three main focus areas as you explore my current collections. First, I delve into ‘geographical fantasy maps’, which are playful interpretations of aerial views above the earth. Second, I explore botanicals, including native wildflowers photographed in Colorado and soon expanding to include Alabama natives. Lastly, I present 'remnants’. These pieces embody my ‘use it up’ philosophy because I begin with my remaining paints and pull my compositions from my artist palettes. I invite you to delve deeper into these processes and ideas as you view my works.