Paintings and Fine Art

Carrie Baxter is from Northwest Illinois and also works out of central Indiana. She graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in studio painting and a Graduate Certificate in Museum Studies from Northern Illinois University (NIU). Carrie has exhibited throughout the Midwest in juried and group exhibitions.

​Carrie’s artwork references elements of nature by focusing on the rare, overlooked, and often disregarded. She also incorporates texture into her artwork in order to create a psychological struggle within the viewer. Although traditionally it is socially unacceptable for viewers to physically feel a work of art on display, her textured paintings provoke an overwhelming desire to reach out and caress the surface to qualm the viewer’s curiosity to feel the ridges and grooves of the media. This desire places the viewer at an impasse where they have to decide whether or not to control their tactile impulses by restraining their desire to experience the artwork on a physical level. ​

​Artist Statement

"I apply encaustic paint (beeswax, damar resin, and pigments) to panels with brushes and heated tools to create fused layers enhanced with mica powder, shellac, paper, image transfers, and other media. Surface texture is created by carving, scratching, and building layers of natural wax accretion.

My artwork references elements of nature and people's relationship to the environment. Humans live on this planet, along with all other life, both flora and fauna; therefore, it is essential to remember that we all share this world. Nature is powerful and can be resilient, but humans continuously leave their lasting mark. Therefore, we all need to recognize how we impact our surroundings and, thus, the world that we live in. I create works to inspire viewers to respect and cherish the delicate ecosystem that every living organism must share." - Carrie Baxter