Lori Elliott-Bartle Studio

oil and cold wax on paper, framed in walnut, about 13”x15”

22” x 30” oil and cold wax on paper, framed.

oil and cold wax on archival paper, framed in walnut, about 17” x 15”

oil colors and cold wax on a 30x30" birch panel

A composition of 5 birch panels, the collection spans about 47” x 30”. Currently on display at Anderson O’Brien Fine Art Gallery in Midtown Crossing.

Inspired by the early spring light on the Platte River as the sandhill cranes begin arriving, this oil and cold wax painting on birch panels is 96" x 47" and is shown here displayed at the Omaha Public Library's Michael Phipps Gallery as part of the exhibit "Rivers." 

This is one of 5 abstract paintings I made with this palette and on 15” x 15” birch panels. sold.

oil and cold wax on 12”x16” paper

This little abstract was a piece I made using colors outside my typical palette, having no real expectation or intent. It's on an 8x8" cradled birch panel. 

I made a series of 15 eclipse-related paintings, about 7x7.5", on paper. Several are framed; many are not. 

one of a series of 7x7" paintings on paper depicting abstracted views of prairie plants

oil colors and cold wax on a 30x30" birch panel

oil colors and cold wax on a 7.5x7.5" birch panel; one of five in a series of abstract explorations

One of a series of paintings on paper related to the M's Pub building fire in Omaha's Old Market. It's about 7x7" before framing. 

oil colors and cold wax on 30x30" panel. The title comes from the  Brandi Carlile song "Have You Ever" which includes the lines

Have you ever been out walking in the snow
Tried to get back where you were before
You always end up not knowing where to go
If you've ever been out walking in the snow

oil colors and cold wax on 15x15" wood panel. sold.

Made with more than 30 layers of pigment and wax, this 30x30" painting depicts the colors and lines of prairie grasses. 

one of a series of paintings on paper. 

This small piece on a wood panel was the first in what has become a  a substantial series of paintings examining aspects of the prairie. Colors, line and motion of grasses continue to capture my imagination. 

This  30x30" mixed media piece (oil colors, beeswax and handmade paper that includes flakes of mica) was included in the book "Thirty-Six Views of O," edited by Kevin Lawler, and also was exhibited in a monthlong national juried show at the Encaustic Art Institute in Santa Fe, New Mexico. It recently sold. 

oil colors and cold wax on 6x6" wood panel

oil colors and cold wax on 30x30" wood panel; recently sold

This painting on paper was inspired by conversations about violence and community. Building up layers and scratching marks and lines, abstracting shapes of houses, streets and sidewalks, thinking about creating stronger connections.  Sold. 

A small painting (6x6") inspired by the colors, energy and movement of migrating sandhill cranes. 

8x8” Mixed media including india ink, mixed papers, oils, wax. Chinese calligraphy for “peace.”

Mixed media pieces offer the opportunity to literally merge art and science when I use charts, graphs and other illustrations gleaned from journal articles and textbooks. Furthering my examination of the Nebraska Sandhills, I’m creating a series of pieces that artistically portray colors and textures found in these distinctive grasslands and include information about the flora, fauna, water and soils of the region.

This is a collage painting on 12x16” paper made with oils, cold wax, illustrations (including a reproduction of a Judy Martindale painting), text and graphs from “An Atlas of the Nebraska Sand Hills” edited by Ann Bleed and Charles Flowerday.

A collage painting on 12x16” paper made with oils, cold wax, illustrations from “An Atlas of the Nebraska Sand Hills” edited by Ann Bleed and Charles Flowerday

A collage painting on 12x16” paper made with oils, cold wax, illustrations from “An Atlas of the Nebraska Sand Hills” edited by Ann Bleed and Charles Flowerday

mixed media, including oils, wax, silk, handmade print on paper, on 20” x 30” birch panel

During an artist residency last summer, I found an old engineering textbook filled with graphs, charts and diagrams that intrigued me. I incorporated them into collage paintings that emphasized their visual appeal and concretely united science and art-making in new pieces. One graph was labelled with the phrase “eccentricity ratio,” which appears to be related to the ways bearings behave under various conditions. I’ve always considered myself eclectic and a bit eccentric, and I was immediately charmed by the phrase. And so this series of collage paintings began, illustrating my ongoing interests between science and art.

Experiences and knowledge in various disciplines inform and enrich one another. We create artificial barriers between the arts and science when they share many approaches to creative problem-solving.

The piece that provided the series title — a collage painting on 12”x16” paper made with oils, cold wax and illustrations from an old engineering textbook

a collage painting on 9”x12” paper made with oils, cold wax and illustrations from an old engineering textbook

a collage painting on 12”x16” paper made with oils, cold wax and illustrations from an old engineering textbook

a collage painting on 12”x16” paper made with oils, cold wax and illustrations from an old engineering textbook

a collage painting on 9”x12” paper made with oils, cold wax and illustrations from an old engineering textbook

12” x 16”

woodcut and watercolor images of birds I regularly see. These were made for "Spreading our Roots: Celebrating the Trees of Midtown," a public art project in Turner Park in 2015. I sealed each print in wax and tied them to branches of a small linden tree. After a month that included thunderstorms, lots of wind and hot sunshine, I took them down and now have them available for sale in my studio. 

Based on beach houses on Mustang Island on the Texas Gulf Coast

My daughter posed for me so I could create this image, inspired by thoughts of Thai spirit houses, whimsical bird houses and a song by They Might be Giants.

This 3x3" reduction print was inspired by a chair and tapestry in my room when I was visiting New Mexico several years ago. 

Ghost House is the oldest building at Ghost Ranch. Several of the windows are set into the adobe walls at imperfect angles. This is a reduction woodcut, about 3x3".

One is a series of woodcuts depicting women who have visible tattoos. Fireflies in the background were pulled from one of her  tattoo designs. 

A small (about 4x4") woodcut I made as the holidays approached reflecting my mixed feelings about the season. I added watercolor to several of these. 

This print was made with two blocks and some reduction to celebrate early spring after a particularly harsh winter. 

This triptych was purchased in 2023 by the City of Omaha to display on the first floor of the Omaha Public Library’s downtown branch.

More than 100 woodcuts, each one watercolored, sealed in wax and laced with ribbon, flutter among the leaves of a linden tree in Turner Park as part of "Spreading our Roots: Celebrating the Trees of Midtown" in May 2015. 

I made more than 100 woodblock prints of birds, watercolored each one, sealed them in wax and strung them with ribbon to hang in a tree in Turner Park as part of Midtown Crossing's "Spreading our Roots: Celebrating the Trees of Midtown" art project in May 2015. 

More than a hundred woodblock prints, watercolored, sealed in wax and laced with ribbon or twine are ready to hang in a linden tree in Turner Park as part of "Spreading our Roots: Celebrating the Trees of Midtown" in May 2015. 

My daughter and my mom helped hang bird prints on the branches of this linden tree in Turner Park as part of "Spreading our Roots: Celebrating the Trees of Midtown" in May 2015. 

Cutting up some of the many prints of birds I had on hand, I collaged and painted this little dog for Adopt Art Omaha, a program in which dozens of artists embellished wood cutouts of a dog. Art lovers Laura Vranes and John McIntyre tie a collar and tag around each dog's neck explaining the program -- yes, it's free, it's a fun way to raise awareness about art and artists, & enjoy your new original piece! They place the art-dogs in public spots making them available to whomever finds them first. Collectors are asked to post photos on the group's Facebook page when they "adopt" their dog. As of late 2015, Bird-dog was expected to go out for adoption in early 2016. 

A musician performs at the "Play Me, I'm Yours" launch party, September 2013. 

I spent weeks painting this piano in one of the first-floor galleries at Hot Shops for "Play Me, I'm Yours" in September 2013. Using the color spectrum as inspiration and comparing it to the notes in our 12-note musical scale, I painted flowering vines climbing the sides of this upright piano. 

I spent weeks painting this piano in one of the first-floor galleries at Hot Shops for "Play Me, I'm Yours" in September 2013. Using the color spectrum as inspiration and comparing it to the notes in our 12-note musical scale, I painted flowering vines climbing the sides of this upright piano. 

On the back of the piano, I attached a net trellis and a package of cardboard leaves with a note asking visitors to write a word or phrase about their experience with the instrument. The first one was attached before the piano left  Hot Shops or its placement in Memorial Park as part of "Play Me, I'm Yours" in September 2013. 

During the two weeks the Garden Party piano was in Omaha's Memorial Park as part of "Play Me, I'm Yours" in September 2013, visitors were invited to attach a paper leaf to the back of the piano with a word or phrase. Many wrote titles of songs they played, others commented on the visual art and some expressed delight. 

The piano I painted, titled "Garden Party," was placed in Omaha's Memorial Park, the site of the launch celebration for "Play Me, I'm Yours"

Dancers from Ballet Nebraska, wearing costumes and hairpieces inspired by the flowering vines painted on the Garden Party piano, perform at the "Play Me, I'm Yours" launch party, September 2013. 

A musician performs at the "Play Me, I'm Yours" launch party, September 2013. 

Collaborating with storyteller Rita Paskowitz, we hosted two storytelling and song-sharing events at the Garden Party piano in Memorial Park as part of  "Play Me, I'm Yours,"  September 2013. 

The golden leaves of cottonwoods shimmer in fall light in northern New Mexico. I've made several painting trips to the area, and one of my favorite sites is Ghost Ranch, near Abiquiu. 

One painting in a series of nudes, "Flow" was named after a friend's comment about the way the lines of a woman's body flow. 24x36"

Pinon trees remain part of the New Mexico landscape even after they die. Their twisting trunks and branches create interesting lines. 

Red rocks in Box Canyon at Ghost Ranch near Abiquiu, New Mexico inspired this 24x36" painting. 

One of two 30x30" self portraits I created for a show in 2012. 

The Chama River in northern New Mexico offers lovely views. I have sketched and painted along its banks and from high above it. A fellow painter shared directions to a tiny side-road that leads to this quiet overlook, a much more pleasant place to work than the shoulder of Highway 84, where I've seen many painters set up an easel. 

Our son in much younger days on a 10x20" canvas

Our daughter in much younger days on a 10x20" canvas

One of the first paintings I made guided entirely by intuition in a time when I wasn't focused on results during the process. I just wanted to enjoy moving paint around on a canvas. 

Inspired by the colors and shapes of fall in New Mexico. 

I've driven countless times through the Flint Hills of Kansas see similar contours in Nebraska's Sand Hills. 

This painting was a commission for a client who had an image in mind and allowed me the freedom to realize it. 

one of the paintings I made for "BARE: naked truth." 24x36"

Pedernal ('flint') mountain from Ghost Ranch, near Abiquiu, New Mexico, in the fall. A smaller painting, about 8x12".

A collaboration between Marcia Joffe-Bouska, Tom Quest and me that started in 2014 has continued and grown so that it stretches over about 40 feet.

The most recent iteration of “River,” shown here, was displayed for the first time at the Norfolk Arts Center in 2019-20. After closing that show, it winds around the hallway walls outside my second-floor studio at Hot Shops Art Center.

The work’s central horizontal portions were created for a 2017 exhibition at the Omaha Public Library's Michael Phipps Gallery, curated by Alex Priest. “Each artist's hand plays in a role in shaping this work,” he said describing the work. “Elliott-Bartle's expressionist painting flows past Joffe-Bouska's glass tiles and found objects, while Quest's ceramic work adds naturalistic texture all in various forms and in multiple moments.”

Together and separately, each artist complements and further explores our connections to and multiple perceptions of place.

Our intention is to place this permanently in a public space where it can spark memories and inspire conversations.

some of the new vertical elements of “River”

A three-panel collaborative piece bears the mark of each of three artists -- Marcia Joffe-Bouska, Tom Quest and me -- while synthesizing an exploration of the landscape around the Missouri River. It is a 60x40” mixed media piece of ceramic, mosaic, collage, found objects, oil colors and beeswax on a birch support.

The artists explore connections between nature and manufactured structures along the river and in the metropolitan area. Using old maps as well as the design of the Bob Kerrey bridge, the artists riffed on shapes, textures, colors and materials to create the piece. Each artist contributed a distinct perspective as well as a willingness to cede control to create this piece in 2015.