Beth Van De Water

It is only now, in my 50s, that I am fully waking up to a sense of limitlessness and the courage to enter the wildness of my own open, ecstatic heart.

I am a Colorado native interested in hidden beauty and the extraordinary change makers of the world. I believe art can drive movements, tell stories and shift perspectives. Art can give voice to the parts of ourselves begging to wake up, perhaps to revolt, perhaps to find solace, or perhaps to bravely nurture.  

I work with metal, textiles, paints and ceramic. The mediums make physical my personal story, one story of a woman walking this earth now, in this time of extraordinary change. I purposely include the traditionally female arts, integrating thread in many pieces, to bring attention to the rich history of the feminine.  Textiles also mend, protect, and wrap us in warmth. 

The heart theme of this set of pieces embodies the fertile binaries of our sex, time and humanity.

The hearts are bloody and beautiful, tough and tender, nature and nurture, faithful and explosive, metaphor and literal. I play with containment and how we explode outside our intended channels and constructs.

I hope my work resonates with women fighting to be seen and desiring to manifest power, instigating conversations and developing community.