Encaustic ravens land in Grange Insurance Audubon Center for the spring

The works of artist Catherine Eaton Skinner will be on display at the Grange Insurance Audubon Center through June 12 as part of the center’s “Art at Audubon” program. Credit: Courtesy of Suzanna Westhagen and Catherine Eaton Skinner

Work from artist Catherine Eaton Skinner will be on display at the Grange Insurance Audubon Center until June 12 to showcase conservation efforts by the Scioto Audubon Metro Park.

The “Illuminations/Ravens” exhibition contains 29 prints of birds and is part of the center’s Art At Audubon program. The Audubon Center serves as a welcome center for the Scioto Audubon Metro Park and presents opportunities for visitors to learn more about the park, Leigh Ann Miller, director of the center, said.

Although her work has been featured in exhibitions all over the world, Skinner said the exhibition is the first time her artwork is being presented as a solo exhibition in a nature center and her first time working in Ohio.

“There were always crows and ravens where I grew up in San Juan Island, Washington, so I started taking photographs and focusing some of my art on birds,” Skinner said. “I have been working with encaustic, which is a mixture of beeswax and resin, for over 30 years.”

With studios in both Seattle and Santa Fe, New Mexico, Skinner said her encaustic paintings involve wax mixed with pigment painted over panels of linen. She said she occasionally uses her photography as an outline before laying down the wax, and the exhibition also includes oil painting, glass and sculpture, according to the Audubon Center Facebook. 

Skinner said she has always been interested in the characters, personalities and backstories of the birds around her, which is in part what inspired her work.

“Ravens have many different interpretations and mythologies,” Skinner said. “They are supposed to be one of the smarter birds, which has always left me fascinated by them.”

Skinner has presented 40 solo exhibitions around the world from Tokyo to New Mexico but said working with nature centers is something she is interested in exploring. Likewise, the Audubon Center has become more involved in the arts this past year, Miller said.

“We decided to rethink our engagement with art in our community,” Miller said. “We want to bring in artwork every two to three months.”

Although it already offers guides to the metro park and guided nature walks, Miller said the center is looking to add new events and exhibitions to its list of offered experiences.

“The Audubon Center offers Saturday morning bird hikes and other guided experiences throughout the metro park for free,” Miller said. “We want to showcase the ecological restoration that has taken place throughout the past 12 years around the Audubon Center and within the metro park.”

The Audubon, located along the Whittier Peninsula, is known for turning a brown field into a flourishing prairie and habitat for animals, Miller said. Its creation began in 2003, when it was determined that 160 acres of the peninsula — also a major migratory bird flyway — would be restored, Miller said. 

Skinner’s art ties into the Audubon Center’s mission, which largely emphasizes the importance of conserving birds and their habitats.

“What’s good for the birds is also good for the people,” Miller said. “The habitats that are being restored and created are important for our environment, especially in this urban setting.”

The Audubon Center wants to focus on engaging different demographics as volunteers, Miller said. There are volunteer opportunities with the center geared toward younger crowds, but Miller said they have not yet been able to fully engage college-aged students, which is a goal of theirs.

“Another one of our bigger goals moving away from COVID is to create fun and mission-focused projects and events that can create a new entryway for those 18 to 25 years old,” Miller said. “We have volunteers that are around this age group, but it is not as many as we would like to see yet.”