Barbara Wentzell Jaquith
Barbara Wentzell Jaquith grew up immersed in the natural world, spending her early years in the heart of the White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire. Surrounded by deep woods, rugged mountain peaks, and ancient, boulder-lined streams, she developed an early and lasting connection to landscape and place. Although she now lives and works from a studio in metro Atlanta, Georgia, she continues to travel extensively by RV, painting en plein air across the varied terrains of the United States and responding directly to shifting light and environment.
Jaquith earned her undergraduate degree in Creative Expression in Society from Plymouth State University. There, she built a strong foundation in classical artistic fundamentals while also learning the importance of discipline, critical inquiry, and respect for the tradition of plein air painting. Mentorship during this period encouraged her to strive for mastery while remaining open to experimentation, shaping an approach that balances rigor with curiosity.
Her practice moves fluidly between realism and abstraction, often within the same body of work. She frequently works in mixed media, combining watercolor, pastels, micron pen, and acrylics, and typically maintains several works in progress at once. Despite this versatility, her first love remains working outdoors with pastels, responding directly to landscape. Through shifts between form and formlessness, her work seeks to cultivate empathy and understanding for the natural world and humanity’s place within it. This commitment extends beyond the studio through regular donations of artwork to nonprofit organizations dedicated to meaningful social and environmental change.
Jaquith is deeply interested in the intersection of visual art and literature. Writers such as Walt Whitman, Robert Frost, and Mary Oliver often accompany her into the field, their reflections on nature serving as quiet points of entry before she begins painting. Buddhist teachings, particularly those of Thich Nhat Hanh and Pema Chödrön, also inform her process, encouraging simplicity, presence, and attentiveness at the easel.
Dialogue plays a central role in her creative life. While painting outdoors, she welcomes conversation with passersby, viewing these exchanges as a universal visual language that transcends cultural and linguistic boundaries. Sharing space, stories, and curiosity transforms what is often a solitary practice into an interactive experience rooted in compassion and connection. She especially enjoys introducing children to pastels, keeping extra materials on hand so they can participate directly. This exchange of energy and attention is so sustaining that she describes never experiencing creative blocks.
Jaquith is currently working on an ongoing project titled A Love Letter to America, a collection of pastel landscapes painted in each state she and her husband visit. Traveling with their dog and parrot, the project asks a central question of stewardship and responsibility: what it means to care for each unique place and habitat. Across her work, Jaquith affirms a belief that America’s landscapes are worthy of attention, care, and protection, and that artists play a vital role in fostering that awareness through presence, observation, and kindness.
