In Studio with Conceptual & Encaustic Artist, Bridgette Meinhold
Bridgette Meinhold is a conceptual artist based in Park City, UT where she is known for her atmospheric, foggy encaustic landscape paintings. Nature is the starting point for all of Meinhold’s work and her inspiration comes from watching the weather, walking in forests, and mindful observation of our environment.
In studio conversation with the artist, Bridgette Meinhold shares how she starts her day, her favorite memory from snowy winters of her studio, her furry studio companions, and more.
What does a day in the studio look like for you?
Some days start with watercolor painting at the coffee table, others with a hike or a run to town. When I make it into the studio, I turn on the wax pot or mix up some milk paint to paint hundreds of trees and afterwards smother them in a layer of wax. Meanwhile I listen to podcasts and throw the ball out the window for my dog, who will run and get it and return it at my feet. Repetition is the name of the game – one tree becomes 10, becomes 100. I wish I could grow real forests this fast.
What is your favorite memory or incident from your studio?
In the winter, and especially the winter of 2023, we had a record amount of snow fall at our place, some 700+ inches of snow. This might be the most snow ever here in Utah since the ice ages (my statistic, but feels accurate to me), and I often dug snow to clear paths to and from the cabin and studio for 2-3 hours every day. Digging down to the door of my studio was a multi-step process requiring me to dig down up to 9 snow steps, toss snow up and out of deep holes, and then move snow out and away, excavating terraces so I would have a place to throw the snow from the next storm. While I’m not sure this winter was my favorite winter ever, it certainly makes for a memorable time, in which my commute to work was a truly labor of love, the studio so buried that when I looked out the windows all I saw was an ice blue snow cave.
Do you have any studio assistants or do any visitors like pets or kids often accompany you maybe?
My 4 year old, Golden Retriever, Australian Shephard and Border Collie mix, Boone is studio manager, assistant, and task manager. In the summer, I leave the door open so he can come in and out as he pleases. My favorite is when he decides to come in and take a nap on a rug and just be present with me while I work. But, he’s also the one to tell me when it’s time to stop working and start playing.
How would you describe a dream studio for yourself?
While my shipping container studio in an aspen grove is a dream, it is a pretty compact space of 160 square feet. Considering I paint pretty large, it makes for some challenging storage and painting configurations. My dream studio is actually in the desert of Southern Utah though with a view of red rock formations, plenty of big island tables to work on, leave projects unfinished perhaps, with a comfy couch for naps, reading and dreaming, and a small kitchen in which I can conduct homemade ink experiments and perform alchemy, or maybe bake some cookies while painting. Big white walls, windows up high that only have views of the sky and the clouds, and a small garden courtyard just outside to enjoy the birds, bees and the flowers.
What does your studio smell of right now?
Beeswax. A heady mixture of honey, wood, and perseverance.
If you get a chance to set up your studio anywhere in the world, where would it be?
Southern Utah.
What are you currently working on?
I am beginning work on my next solo encaustic show for Gallery MAR in Park City, Utah. I am also working on a site-specific handmade living ink project based on the preservation of an old mining structure.
How do you organize your space?
With a compact studio comes the need for efficient storage and only keeping what is truly necessary. I just finished a big cleanout of the studio to get rid of materials, books, and experiments that I no longer need. I don’t keep a lot of work on hand as I have very little place to store it, so I make work and send it off to galleries and hope it goes to a good home and never returns to me.
Favorite corner in your studio?
My cozy chair I inherited in college from a roommate and my cork board where I post bits of inspiration and photos.
Read more about Bridgette Meinhold on her Website and Instagram.
