Carole Barnes

Nancy Eckels became a full-time artist only after ending another creative career. She moved to California to attend college, and happily worked in television for many years. She was a director on the CBS daytime drama The Bold and the Beautiful when she decided to move on to full-time painting. Given her family background, it seemed like the most natural transition she could make.

Nancy was born in Kingston, New York, but moved to Utah at age 7 when her father was transferred for his work. With her family, she spent her summers exploring many of the national parks and natural wonders of the West, where her father loved to fish and photograph. He instilled in her a love and appreciation for the beauty and colors of nature, while her mother taught her many of the lessons of art.

Nancy gained quite an art education through "osmosis" while being around talented family members. She has learned much from working with several experimental abstract painters, including Katherine Chang Liu, Carole Barnes, and Pat Dews.

Over the past 18 years Nancy’s work has been placed in homes and businesses across the country. Before she gave up the traveling life, she participated for multiple years in several of the top juried art shows in the United States, including the La Quinta Arts Festival in the California desert and the annual show at the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts in Arizona.

Nancy’s mission continues — that is to continue to create special paintings that speak to her and her collectors. And she will keep applying paint to every canvas with that in mind!

Nancy will be painting as long as she can hold a brush. It's a passion that will not be lost to retirement. She lives with her husband in Canyon Country, California.

Find original Nancy Eckels paintings on 1stDibs.

(Biography provided by Pacific Edge Gallery)

Mixed media is a type of art that sees artists using a range of materials or more than one medium. Find a range of mixed media paintings and other artworks for your space today on 1stDibs.

Mixed media is distinct from multimedia, which describes art involving electronic media, including video, computers and digital elements. Artists combine painting, drawing, photography and sculpture for mixed media art. Instead of sticking to one form, they aim to break boundaries and create unique pieces. Pop art is one of the vibrant periods for mixed media art, with Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg among its most fabled producers. Rauschenberg, like many mixed media artists, used found objects in his work, from cast-off furniture to newspapers.

Collage is one of the most well-known areas of mixed media. Artists use various types of paper, fabric, photographs and more to create one cohesive work. A type of collage is assemblage, which involves 3D objects.

While artists may use fabric in collage, it can be the very substance of the art itself. Fabric art makes extensive use of texture. Artists may paint or embroider on fabric to create layers of texture and color to evoke a specific feeling. They can also transfer photos onto fabric for innovative ways to display visuals.

Resin-based art has clean, sharp lines and a definitive shape. Resin is a liquid that hardens to a high-gloss surface and is used to seal wood, counters and floors. Resin can also seal artwork, and many artists tint it using pigment powder, ink, spray paint and other vivid materials. If water is added, the resin will turn milky instead of being completely transparent. It’s common for artists working in mixed media to use resin on nontraditional surfaces like glass, wood, metal and stone. This creates a shine that’s perfect to brighten a dull space in the home or office.

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