Recently, while shopping at Jerry’s Artarama in Austin, I came across one of their free weekend demos on the art of encaustics. I first learned about encaustic painting during my days as an employee at Dick Blick Art Supply in Evanston, IL. However, I’d never seen the medium in use and was reluctant to try it myself as the costs for a single encaustic bar of paint was usually well over $30 (and because painting encaustics involved the use of a dangerous looking heat gun)!
Nevertheless, while I was shopping, I took advantage of the opportunity to take a peek at the demo and meet the artist, Sharon Kyle Kuhn. Sharon, as smart artists do, took the opportunity to tell me about her encaustic workshops and classes.
I’d been extremely curious lately about encaustics (after seeing an encaustic work by Amy Jacobs). Needless to say, I signed up for her Encaustic Monotype Class, which was held at her studio at the Bay6 Gallery. While I was there, I checked out the current show, Tricycle, which featured Sharon’s work as well as the work of artists Caroline Wright and Darvin Jones - all of whom I highly recommend.
If you aren’t familiar with encaustics, let me give you a brief intro. This historical medium has been in use since ancient Egyptian times and is incredibly resilient because it is impervious to moisture. As I understand it, pigment is mixed into beeswax (with a bit of resin) which results in the encaustic medium used to paint with. You use this paint in its molten form, let it harden and can then infuse it with heat again before letting it cure. But to put it simply, you are basically painting with melted wax! There are several techniques for melting the paints. The one we used in class was a heated “light box” (kind of like an electric skillet). As you rub the paint bars on it, the paint melts like butter right before your eyes. Once your design is in place on the metal panel, you put a piece of prepared paper on top of it, rub it with a burrin and viola - you have transfered the image to the paper! Of course, it is a versatile medium and there are probably a number of different techniques for painting - this was a specialty monotype technique.
Bay6 is one of those beautiful warehouse studio spaces filled with lots of lights, plants and music - I loved the atmosphere. Of course, with the all melting of beeswax, I shouldn’t have been surprised to find several giant bees flying around the studio. Those of you who know me, know that I have a completely irrational fear of bees and hornets. However, my determination to play with encaustics outweighed my fear. I gave a little offering to the bee gods and they graciously allowed me to create art with the fruit of their labor… but not without taunting me with their stingers and flying close to see my progress!
I also overcame my fear of the heat gun, and went straight from making monotypes on paper to paining with encaustics and fusing between every layer. Here’s a little sample of my very first encaustic work! Click the picture to read more about it:
Expect more encaustic work in the very near future!
Poppy Field. 6 x 6. Encaustic sketch. © 2008 Haley Nagy.
