Artist's Statement
Twenty-five years have passed since I started My Women Series. It has undergone obvious changes from its first incarnation as dream-like imagery to its present rather strange naturalism.
I utilize archetypes to tell my story. My understanding of them has come after years of research. I tap into millennia of wisdom, mythology, proverb, fairy tale and religion. With WOMAN as my focus, I project through a feminist lens, examining everything.
The women have slowly taken on more humanity although they sometimes hide behind make-up and costumes. Odd, inexplicable events pull them together.
The paintings and drawings have become less strident; the issues are now less overt. My voice is no longer shrill; my colors are softer. Humor even makes an occasional appearance. While the vocabulary remains the same, the mystery and enigma are now more subtle.
Recently, I have taken on another subject: MAN. Exploring men’s issues is opening up a whole new mode of thinking which is exciting and challenging. I have put aside my feminist viewpoint to truly look at this opposite gender.
The jack-in-the-box showed up in my work years ago and has maintained its presence in various incarnations, including the “Boxed Saints” Series. It represents surprise, shock, fear and apprehension as well as a hiding place. The crow appears frequently and is a totemic, positive element in my work.
My current series, called “Ship of Fools,” examines larger issues of our social, political and environmental milieu.
View Barbara's discussion of her work at SNW Gallery here.
Artist's Background
Barbara Waterman-Peters, (BFA, Washburn University, MFA, Kansas State University, Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts, Washburn University) whose award-winning work is in museum, corporate and private collections, is represented by several galleries. She was a founding member of the Collective Art Gallery (1987-2014) and is a charter member of Circle of 7. She has shown regionally, nationally and internationally in over 250 solo, invitational and juried exhibitions.
Waterman-Peters taught at Washburn and Kansas State Universities as well as Lassen Community College in California. She has received a Certificate of Recognition for Outstanding Achievement from the State of Kansas and the Monroe Award from the Washburn University Alumni Association. In 2011 she was awarded the ARTY for Distinguished Visual Artist from ARTSConnect in Topeka.
For many years, Waterman-Peters has been the staff artist for the Andrew and Georgia Neese Gray Theater at Washburn University.
She served on the Quality of Life Foundation for Heartland Visioning, part of which then became the original North Topeka Arts District (NOTO) Board. In addition, she served as co-chair of the CREATe group, another facet of Heartland Visioning. In 2010 she became the first Core Artist in NOTO, founding STUDIO 831. Waterman-Peters is now serving as the Artists Advisory Committee Chair for NOTO and is organizing the NOTO Plein Air Project.
Currently, she writes about art and artists for TOPEKA, LAWRENCE and KANSAS! Magazines.