©2011 OWNERSHIP OF DESIGN this information prepared by Encaustic Art Institute shall remain the property thereto, and

shall retain all common law, statutory and other reserved rights, including the copyright thereto.

Spring 2011

Cover story

Portfolio

Portfolio

Portfolio

Portfolio

Spotlight

Spotlight

EAI

EAI

For More Information about the Encaustic Art

Institute:

Website: http://www.eainm.com

Blog: http://www.eainm.blogspot.com/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/

Encaustic-Art-Institute/332917031347

Founder:

Douglas Mehrens at mehrens@eainm.com

Encaustic Art Institute Administration:

* Douglas Mehrens, Founder/CEO

Board of Directors:

* Glenn Fellows

* Michael Allison

* Perry Lovelace

* Douglas Mehrens

Artist Board:

* Russell Thurston, Program Director

* Kari Gorden, Membership Director

*Kate Palmo, Education Director

*Linda Fillhardt, Blog Coordinator

* Perry Lovelace, Marketing Director

* Barbara Gagel, Fund Raiser Coordinator

* Teena Robinson, Graphics & Computer Support

* Michael Phillip Pearce, Carbon Vudu LLC, Magazine Art Director.

Cover and logo design by Nanette Newbry, Studio 2055, cover art by Francisco Benitez, Epithimia, 18”X24”.

The Encaustic Art Magazine is published by The Encaustic Art Institute, 18 County Road 55a, (General Goodwill Road) Cerrillos, NM 87010-9779

Greek word meaning “to heat or burn in” (enkaustikos). Encaustic:

Spring 2011

6 Francisco BenitezCover story

14 Nancy NatalePortfolio

22 Kim BernardPortfolio

26 Paula RolandPortfolio

30 Encaustic + Paper: A Sample Book

Techne`

18 Howard HerschPortfolio

17 Eileen GoldenbergSpotlight

25 Stephanie HuertaSpotlight

13 Harmony

21 Upcoming Conferences

4 From the InstituteEAI

5 Calendar of EventsEAI

1.Techne, or techné, the Greek word techné is often translated as craftsmanship, craft, or art. It is the rational method involved in producing an object or accomplishing a goal or objective. Techne resembles the implication of knowledge of principles, although techne differs in that its intent is making or doing, as opposed to “disinterested understanding.”

Dear Readers,

Welcome, I am proud to announce the kick-off of our first on-line by-yearly Encaustic Magazine, the Spring Issue. In this issue you will see we have a featured cover artist, Francisco Benitez, a veteran encaustic artist who lives, creates and teaches in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He is one of the workshop instructors at The Encaustic Art Institute in Santa Fe. In addition, Francisco gives us a fascinating and thorough scholarly history of encaustic art, and shares more examples of his extraordinary portrait art.

Inside this issue you will find “Close-ups” of four accomplished artists who work with encaustic. Kim Bernard is a founding member of New England Wax who works in North Berwick, ME. She shares her explo-ration of movement through a question and answer interview. Howard Hersh is an artist who lives and works in San Francisco. He shares how

after 25 years of creating artwork, he approaches his art practice. Paula Roland is a well known teacher and artist from Santa Fe, NM. She is an award-winning artist known for popularizing the process of monotypes. Through interviewing, we learn about her themes of work – past, present and future. Nancy Natale lives and works in western Massachusetts. She shares her particular process in developing her series of mixed medium work called Running Stitch. Each of these featured artists brings something new to encaustic work and to the encaustic movement.

Elsewhere in this first issue of Encaustic Arts, you can get technique tips from the artists at Wax Works West, a school for the encaustic arts outside Santa Cruz, CA, and learn about their ingenious encaustic “sample books.” You can also learn about the buzzzzz in an article about bees wax.

I began the The Encaustic Art Institute, a non-profit organization, three years ago with the intention to expand and expound on the medium of wax. We now have over 100 members from all over the country, with every stripe of artist using wax exclusively or assimilating it with their own mediums. Our gallery holds one of the largest and most diverse examples of encaustic art in the country. We also just added 3 bee hives to our Institute to create a little more buzzzzz.

Just as The Encaustic Art Institute is YOUR Institute, we want Encaustic Arts magazine to be YOUR magazine. This magazine is for all artists who work with encaustic wax and for those who wish to start with this magical medium. The resurgence of interest in this ancient medium has been gaining momentum quickly, and is becoming an international phenomenon. Encaustic organizations are springing up all over the country. Art collectors both large and small are taking notice of the medium and the diverse ways it is lending itself to both traditional and contemporary expression. We hope you join us in being a part of the movement. Send us your suggestions for features and other content. Do you have a favorite tool, or a special technique you’ve discovered or developed from working with encaustic? Maybe you have news about the artists who work in encaustic in your area? We want to hear about it.

We hope you enjoy Encaustic Arts. Meanwhile, keep on waxing!

Douglas MehrensFounder and CEOEncaustic Art Institute

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From

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Doug Mehrens

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2011

June 1 through September 1 Habitat for Humanity and EAI present the Harmony Art Panel

at The Encaustic Art Institute Gallery. Open weekends 1-6 pm

26Members’ Program: 2:30 EAI Gallery

July15-17“Photo Encaustic Workshop” : Michael David

17Artists Board Meeting 1:00 EAI Gallery

Members’ Program 2:30 EAI Gallery

29“Hot Wax/Cool Art Workshop” : Margaret Berry

30“Blazing the Wax Trail New Tools/Techniques Workshop”:

Margaret Berry

August6OPENING: “Mining the Unconscious” (collaboration with Red

Book project) EAI Gallery Cerrillos, NM 1-6 PM (6-28 show)

19-21“Waxed Paper Workshop” : Michelle Belto

28Members’ Program 2:30 EAI Gallery

September11“Remembering 9/11” (one day memorial event)

173rd Annual EAI Fundraising Gala and Auction

EAI Gallery Cerrillos, NM 5-8 PM

October1Habitat for Humanity and EAI presents the

Harmony Community Project, a fund-raising Auction

held at Creative Albuquerque 115 4th Street NW 87102

Open from 6 pm to 9 pm

8OPENING: National Encaustic Invitational: (juried)

Linda Durham, juror. Call for art goes out June 1, 2011

EAI Gallery Cerrillos, NM 1-6 PM (8-30 Show)

Artists’ Board: 1:00 EAI Gallery

Members Program: 2:30 EAI Gallery

15-16“Beginning Encaustic Workshop”: Harriette Tsosie

November5OPENING: “Miniatures”

EAI Gallery Cerrillos, NM 1-6 PM

11-13“Encaustic & Paper Workshop”: Wendy Aiken, Judy Stabile,

Daniella Woolf

18-20“Encaustic with/Textile Sensibility Workshop” : Daniella Woolf

27Artists Board: 1:00 EAI Gallery

Members’ program: 2:30 EAI Gallery

December11Christmas Party

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Francisco Benitez, Lucrezia, 30”X30”

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FROM THE DEPTHS OF THE PAST TO THE URGENCY OF THE PRESENT:ENCAUSTIC AS A MEDIUM FOR ALL AGES

By Francisco Benitez

There is no doubt that encaustic has become one of the hottest painting mediums to appear on the art scene in the last twenty years. For a good part of the twentieth century, when new mediums, materials, and pigments were appearing on the market—such as acrylic, a plethora of new pigments and mediums, and new supports--encaustic painting was resigned to a somewhat marginal status. Despite interest in the medium by certain American and European painters working in isolation, such as David Aronson, who were active in the 1930’s and 1940’s, encaustic did not hit stardom until Jasper Johns began to use it for many of his “Target”

and “Flag” series paintings in the 1950’s and 1960’s. Johns himself admitted that he used encaustic in a very basic and simple way, but even he did not realize the floodgates he was about to open.

How encaustic had humble beginnings in Ancient Greece as a paint for seafaring ships, to advance to the status of being one of the most highly-prized painting media in the golden age of the late Classical and Hellenistic periods, to then slowly fade away from artistic practice in the late medieval period, only to be reborn out the ashes in the twentieth century, is a compelling tale. Encaustic, although not the oldest medium in history—that prize goes to fresco painting— is a member of a small elite of primal painting media from the dawn of civilization. Although a written history can be traced to the Greeks, we know that beeswax has been a part of us as long as we have been around. It is known that some form of encaustic

was used in Ancient Egypt, and it is not impossible that in fact the Egyptians may have given the knowledge to the Greeks. In any case, our best written

record of the history of ancient painting is Pliny, a Roman scholar and encyclopedist from the first century AD, who wrote the Natural History. In Book 35, Pliny explains, although in less than scientific fashion, the beginnings and development of Greek and Roman painting. Whether the Egyptians gave the knowledge to the Greeks, or they developed it on their own, one thing is certain, the Greeks saw the use of applying beeswax mixed with pitch to the wood of ships. Wax is an extremely resistant material, especially to the ravages of humidity and microbes. That is a good reason why so many of the Fayum portraits are in splendid condition. With pigment, a resin, and beeswax, artists began decorating ships with vivid colors and frightening attributes such as the gigantic eyes we recognize in triremes, which were meant to instill fear in the enemy. This form of painting seemed to be very durable, and before long we see it being incorpo-rated into the greater Greek tradition of wall and panel painting. One of the first artists mentioned by Pliny to use encaustic was Polygnotos (flourished around 475-450 BC), who was an artist who was crucial at making the break with the hieratic and schematic Archaic style, and pointing the way for a more optical and scientific approach to visualizing nature. There is a striking parallel with oil painting nearly 2,000 years later--as it became the painting medium par excellence in the Renaissance and Baroque because of an overwhelming impulse to represent nature and optical reality. Encaustic, because of its inherent “optical” qualities, was seen as a better medium to represent the complex-ity of the human form and nature than the flatter, water-based media such as tempera and fresco. Polygnotos was still an artist who was a product of his period, and although he moved painting in the direction of this new “opticality”—his major contribu-tions were the development of complex draperies, facial expressions, and psychology—if one were to see his work today, it would remind one of Greek

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Minoan Fresco, National Archaeological Museum, Athens, c1500 BC

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vase painting in its outlined forms, flat areas of color, and schematic approach to space. Despite this, Polygnotos was an ambitious artist who was versed in many techniques, and his grand master-piece was a vast mural cycle at Delphi represent-ing Odysseus’ descent into the Underworld.

It was Apollodoros in the Classical Period who invented skiagraphos, which means “to shade”. It is he who thrust Western painting onto a long road which would reach its climax twenty centuries later in the work of Caravaggio, the ultimate “shadow” artist. This movement towards shading propelled art on a radical path whereupon it would give sculptural and three dimensional form to the figure, and bridge the gap between the painterly imagination and optical reality. Changing times required new media to reflect the shifting landscape of artistic evolution, and encaustic was a medium that aptly found a new central role. Apol-lodoros’ invention created a ripple effect in which a chasm developed, causing a division in art which lingers to this day—the eternal debate and tension between form and color, pathos and ethos, line and chiaroscuro . The real moment where encaustic would take center stage was at the end of the Classical period and the beginning of the Hellenistic period, when a great school flourished on the Peloponne-sus—Sikyon. I had the privilege of visiting the site this past summer with my wife. This city, which was one of the oldest in Greece, became the equivalent of a Florence, Paris, or New York, in antiquity. It sits upon a hill overlooking the strait which separates

Peloponnesus from the mainland. There was a great school of painting, and it is said that compe-tition was tremendous to enter, and if one was accepted, one faced paying tuition not unlike what today’s college students face. Eupompos, one of the first “celebrity” teachers, charged a talent per year at the academy, which was the equivalent of $20,000. Considering that in ancient times people did not have the same resources as today, that sum of money was a huge sacrifice for any family sending their child to be educated. Eupompos was the radical educator. He was one of the crucial figures that lifted art from being a manual craft to a higher sphere of intellectual and philosophi-cal pursuit. He developed a program of instruction that encompassed not only mastery of materials, drawing, painting, anatomy, subject matter, etc, he also enveloped his students in, what we would consider today, a liberal arts or “Renaissance” learning atmosphere. Arithmetic, logic, geometry, grammar, and many of the disciplines associated with a classical education were an integral part of the Sikyonian school’s program. If this was not enough, Eupompos also saw to drawing being an integral part of the education of free schoolchil-dren all throughout Greece. It was no longer craft; it had become part of a well-rounded, enlightened education.

Out of this brilliant school came some of the greatest names of Greek art. Today they are unknown, but in antiquity they had a celebrity status rivaling or surpassing that of Picasso or Warhol. Pliny states that certain paintings sold for the prices of entire cities, and in Roman times coveted master-pieces brought from Greece were hung in public places and were almost considered sacred. These paintings became so famous that a whole business was born which has uncanny parallels to today’s poster business—master artisans would propose to wealthy Roman patrons to recreate famous Greek masterpieces in their villas, which would be part of

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Classical Period Fresco Painting, Parthenon, Athens, 5th c BC]

Sikyon today

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a larger decorative wall fresco scheme. One of the most stunning examples is at the House of the Vettii at Pompeii, where we can recognize masterpieces by Zeuxis, Timomachos of Byzantium, and others.

In the Natural History, Pliny states that it is not agreed who invented encaustic--but the first artist to become famous as a true encaustic artist in his own right was Pausias. Although we have little idea as to the scale and appearance of his work, Pliny mentions his work was smaller scale on wood, and often the subject matter was children and floral arrangements. Pausias also did ceiling paintings, frescoes, and large paintings. It is not clear whether he used encaustic with those projects. One thing that is known about his encaustic painting was that was a slow process and to counter criticism, he executed what came to be known as the “One-Day Boy”, as he did a full length picture of a boy in a single day. The master who taught encaustic to Pausias was Pamphilos, who happened to be the teacher of Apelles--considered the greatest painter of antiquity. Although the jury is still out on whether Apelles was an encaustic or tempera painter, there is no doubt he raised painting to a level which would not be equaled until the Renais-sance nearly 1,500 years later. Apelles was not only the personal court artist to Alexander the Great, he pushed projectivist space outwards, inwards, and all around. His figures were steeped in atmospher-ic perspective ; his compositions were ambitious and full of mathematical complexity. According to a recent study , the author of the famous painting

The meaning of encaustic in Greek is to “burn in”; therefore it would seem a contradiction in terms to say that a cold wax method needed to be burned in. Although Punic wax’s origins are unclear—from the name we can assume there is some connection with Carthage or North Africa—it became a widely used wax technique. It was made by boiling purified beeswax, and adding natrum, or the equivalent of a saponifying agent such as potash or sodium bicarbonate. In essence, it becomes a soapy wax which air dries, and can further be manipulated and fused by approach-ing a heating element such as a thermastris, or its modern equivalent--a heat gun or iron. Although Punic wax lacks the luminosity of heated wax, it is nonetheless beautiful as it has the appearance of a kind of wax-like tempera. Numerous studies

upon which Alexander mosaic at the Museo Nazionale in Naples is based, is actually by Apelles and not Philoxenos, as has been widely believed. There is a mention that “Apelles’ wax would fain have inscribed you…” in Statius’ Silvae. It is hard to believe such a vast and ambitious composi-tion such as Alexander Vanquishing Darius could have been done with such a painstaking method such as heated encaustic. One thing that must be remembered is that in antiquity there was a cold and hot method for encaustic. Perhaps for larger compositions, the cold technique, also known as “Punic wax”, was used.

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Metope from the Tomb of the Swing, 4th c BC, encaustic, Louvre

Alexander Mosaic, Museo Nazionale, Naples

Encaustic setup by Euphrosyne Doxiadis, author of the Mysterious Fayum Portraits]

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on the Fayum portraits have revealed that both hot and cold methods were used, which means that depending on the local atelier and tradition, “encaustic” could mean one or the other. As we pass from the golden age of Helle-nistic painting and the Sikyonian School to Imperial Rome, we see encaustic still retains a central role in painting, especially for portrait painting as its optical depth lends itself so well to the rendering of human skin. The great tradition of ancestor portraits flourished in Rome, and as the Imperial Age fell into decline, the outlying provinces of the empire maintained their own local traditions, which are most evident today in the vast number of funerary portraits which have been unearthed in Egypt, known as the Fayum portraits. It is believed the Fayum portraits have their origins in the Alexandrian School, which was associated with Apelles’ passing through the city later in his life. As Greeks began to colonize Egypt more and more, especially in the fertile district of the Fayum (south of Cairo), an unusual tradition developed which was the fusion of local Egyptian funerary traditions with rational “realistic” Western painting approaches. Artists were both Greek and native-born, and infused the more ancient, hieratic and symbolic approach to portraiture with

Contrary to what is commonly thought, the

sarcophagi were not buried immediately; they were kept in a special chamber in the household and brought out on special occasions so

the “spirit” of the ancestor could be present.

one which was individualizing, “skiagraphic”, and psychological. Many of the tools which were used were medical instruments for eye surgery, cleaning the ears, etc, and in the mid-nineteenth century a tomb was discovered in Northern France of a woman painter from the same period, although clearly a different region, who had a box of waxes and various “cauteria” or tools. The markings of the heated tools are clearly seen in any of the Fayum portraits. Although it cannot be determined at present whether they were executed by itinerant artists, or whether it was the clients who went to the artist’s studio, it is clear is that they are remark-able in the high level of technique and sophistica-tion, and demonstrate how the encaustic method lends itself remarkably well to representing the pathos of the sitters. The works often remained in the household of the owner until death, at which time they were applied to a sarcophagus. Contrary to what is commonly thought, the sarcophagi were not buried immediately; they were kept in a special chamber in the household and brought out on special occasions so the “spirit” of the ancestor could be present. After a number of generations, when the memory of the ancestor started to fade, the sarcophagus was buried often in a careless fashion in the ground with no ceremony. It is remark-able that the portraits are in such superb condition considering the neglectful way in which they were disposed.

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Fayum Lady, c 200 AD

Set of cauteria, National Archaeological Museum, Athens

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As these works were executed in the first few centuries after the birth of Christ, they are what we would consider products of late antiquity. The Fayum portraits are the last breath of the great Sikyonian School, before expiring at the dawn of the Byzantine period. After the fall of the Roman Empire, and when Christianity was sweeping most of the Western world, we see the last examples

of encaustic painting in a series of precious panels which are currently at the St. Catherine Monastery in the Sinai, depicting Christ, the Virgin Mary, St. Peter. These works laid the foundation for the ever-popu-lar and widespread icon painting tradition which continues to this day. However, it was tempera that took the torch, and until present icon painters tradi-tionally use tempera instead of encaustic. At the end of the 6th century AD, encaustic disappears from view. Already in the later Fayum portraits, one sees a return to a more symbolic and schematic way of representing faces; since tempera was cheaper and easier to use, it began to replace the more expensive and work-intensive encaustic portraits of an earlier period. Although it is impossible to say that it was not practiced in certain quarters of the world, perhaps in isolated communities in Greece or Russia, encaustic disappeared from view for over a thousand years. During the Renaissance, the only artists who attempted to experiment with wax were Lucas Cranach and Andrea Mantegna. It would take the emerging and evolving scientific disci-pline of archaeology to resurrect it from obscurity. In the 1599, Pompeii was discovered, as were a host of other sites throughout the ancient world in the following centuries. Excavations at Herculane-um began in 1738, and in the 18th century fervor swept Europe with a passion for the antique--the lost methods of the ancient artists held new appeal. The 18th century was a very complex time since the church was losing hegemony over the minds and bodies of the population; scientific thought was emerging at a meteoric pace, and art was going through an identity crisis. As the idealism and powerful impulses of the Renaissance had dissipated, many artists and intellectuals sought inspiration in the great traditions of the past—Pliny suddenly became interesting, as did political ideas developed initially in the ancient world, which propelled the radical overthrow of a royalist auto-cratic regime in France in the late 18th century. One figure would emerge as the “discov-erer” of the ancient encaustic method—the Count of Caylus. Caylus was a fervent French antiquar-ian, artist, historian, and all-around intellectual, and it is thanks to him that the encaustic method was

rediscovered in the mid 18th century. He read Pliny carefully and became obsessed with this ancient technique which had held a prime place millennia before the well-respected oil technique was even developed. In the tumultuous times preceding the French Revolution, Caylus would feud with other intellectuals of the period, namely Diderot, for not revealing the recipes of the ancient wax mixtures Although Caylus’ “discovery” was greeted with a certain amount of skepticism in artistic and intel-lectual circles of 18th century France, they sowed the seeds of a whole new generation of “investiga-tors” of the methods of the ancients which would continue well into the 20th century. The 19th century saw the publication of numerous tracts on encaustic painting, namely Jacques Nicolas Paillot de Montabert who published an eight-volume set of books on painting tech-niques (1829) which featured an entire volume on encaustic, as well as a landmark study published in 1884 by Frenchmen Henry Cros and Charles Henry, entitled, L’encaustique.

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Comte de Caylus

St. Médard-des-Prés tomb objects

St. Peter, St. Catherine Monastery, Sinai

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1. Richard Frumess, Encaustic Painters of Ancient Times, 2009 (founder of R&F Handmade Paints).

2. Aerial perspective or atmospheric perspective refers to the effect the atmosphere has on the appearance of an object as it is viewed from a distance.

3. Paolo Moreno, Apelles: The Alexander Mosaic, Skira, 2001. 4. Margaret Bevier, http://gallery.sjsu.edu/arth198/painting/encaustic.html5. Margaret Bevier, http://gallery.sjsu.edu/arth198/painting/encaustic.html6. Joanne Mattera, The Art of Encaustic Painting, 2001.7. The Whole Works of Xenephon, Harvard, 1916.

For more information about Francisco: http://www.franciscobenitez.com/

Although encaustic was something which fascinated anti-quarians and historians, it did not become popular until the development and widespread diffusion of electricity in the 20th century. Mexican muralists were among the first to revive the technique, as well as French spiritual artist Georges Roualt, in the first half of the 20th century. In pre-war America, Karl Zerbe and David Aronson were known as artists who investigated and experimented with encaustic. This period did not have the anti-quarian passion of a previous generation, but nonetheless did see the publication of a landmark book on encaustic, which was to be crucial for modern artists curious about the method—The Painter’s Companion, A Basic Guide to Studio Methods and Materials (1949) by Reed Kay . In post-war America, Jasper Johns began to experi-ment with the method for his “Target” series, and in the years following, artists such as Robert Rauschenberg, Mimmo Paladino, Roy Lichtenstein, and Julian Schnabel made it an integral part of their practice. In the 1980’s and 90’s encaustic became the “best-kept secret” of emerging artistic media, with artists such as Joanne Mattera, Paula Roland, Tony Sherman pushing the medium to its limits in abstract, figurative, and mixed-media directions. Today encaustic has become one of the most popular artistic media, with artists discov-ering an endless potential for layering and process. Artists like myself have been aston-ished by encaustic’s capacity for rendering optical reality in a way which evokes Xenephon’s depiction of Socrates visiting the atelier of Parrhasios: “Is not painting, Parrhasios, a represen-tation of what we see?”[1]

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Tony Sherman

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Francisco Benitez, The Voyage 18”X24”

Y o u r C o m p l e t e R e s o u r c e f o r P r o f e s s i o n a l G r a d e E n c a u s t i c s

a n d P i g m e n t S t i c k s ™

8 0 0 . 2 0 6 . 8 0 8 8 | r f p a i n t s . c o m

The HARMONY project was originally

conceived as a way to engage a

community of artists in a collaborative

creative project. 32 encaustic artists

from all over the United States formed the

original community to bring HARMONY

into reality. This monumental art piece

will inspire an ever expanding community

celebrating the human spirit.

The Encaustic Art Institute, a New Mexico

Non Profit Art Corporation (www.eainm.

com) has embraced the vision with

its community of artists by purchasing

HARMONY and taking it to the larger

community by soliciting sponsorships

and organizing the fund-raising displays

in many cities.

Habitat for Humanity was chosen as the

ideal beneficiary of funds raised through

the HARMONY experience. Habitat for

Humanity seeks to eliminate poverty

housing and homelessness from the

world and to make decent shelter a

matter of conscience and action. Funds

raised by the HARMONY community are

donated to this noble cause.

HARMONY, 4’ x 8’, 32 encaustic-on-wood panels

H A R M O N Y

The HARMONY project will tour eight major

cities using local and national sponsors,

local art galleries and museums to display

HARMONY in public spaces. Additional

art and auction items will be donated and

sold as part of the fund-raising effort and

community experience. Our goal is to

raise enough funds to construct a home

in each supporting community.

We invite you to become a part of this

great community and become a sponsor,

donate your art, time and heart, or just

experience the energy of community.

The first community will be Albuquerque/

Santa Fe, New Mexico with the following

efforts:

• Recruit sponsors from the design and construction community

• Architects, building suppliers, contractors, utilities, media, etc.

• Government agencies, Non-Governmental Organizations, museums, faith-based organizations, etc.

• Determine public place for HARMONY display and events

• Schedule and advertise fund-raising events including media coverage and dates for community fund-raising functions.

• Donate raised funds to Habitat for Humanity in a media event.

For additional information, including each of the HARMONY

artists’ stories, please visit: www.rodneythompson.com/

temporary_storage/HARMONY.html Details can be found by clicking on individual panels within the

grid.

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Promised Land, from the Running Stitch Series, 2010. Encaustic with mixed media, 27”H x 42”W.

Tingshas, from the Black Relics series, 1995. Foam rubber and tacks, 12”Hx22”W.

Last year I began making a new series of work in mixed media with encaustic that I call the Running Stitch. The works combine the sculptural qualities of wax with an accretion of elements to make semi-relief, loosely-geometric paintings that allude to the building up and wearing away of memory over time. By cutting strips from materials such as parts of old books, painted paper and cardboard, recycled rubber and patinated metal, I create a rigorous jumble of texture, color, reflectivity and material asso-ciations while making a new abstract arrangement with a rich physical presence. The many tacks I use to attach the elements to wooden panels superimpose a flexible grid and add a polyrhythmic undertone to the main horizontal or vertical orientation of the strips. Once I have completed construc-tion, I begin to paint. Pigmented encaustic not only adds color, but also it unifies the elements, and pumps up the muscular-ity of the composition by adding dimension and highlighting the organizing grid. Encaustic is the magic ingredient that turns the construction into a painting. The fact that I use a heated tool called a “shoe” to fuse the encaustic in the Running Stitch series is serendipity.

TAKING AN AESTHETIC LEAP:How I Moved From

Here to There

By Nancy Natale

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Some Fell Among Thorns, from the Running Stitch Series, 2010. Encaustic with mixed media, 24”H x 42”W.

Black Sun, 2009. Encaustic with mixed media, 24”Hx12”W.

Tracing the Steps in the Development ProcessThis series reflects an aesthetic leap in my work, but my forward movement was achieved bit by bit. I would like to share how the series came about because I think it demonstrates several processes that artists use to develop their work.

1) Arrange Your Own Retrospective: Looking Back to See AheadThe impetus for my new body of work was a serious look back at work I had made some years before. I think this is a valuable process for any artist. When you look back at older work, you can see how your work has developed, what consistent tendencies you have shown over time, and where you are headed. In my case, just prior to the third annual encaustic conference in 2009, I was looking through a book about the early work of Lee Bontecou. Her work jogged my memory of a series I had made in the 1990s that I called the Black Relics. I was inspired to revisit my early pieces to see if there was still something in them for me.

2) First Imitate, Then InnovateThe first new works I made were basically the same as the old in being composed of small elements attached to wood with tacks. I wanted to find a way to add encaustic to this work, so I experimented by adding and subtracting areas of encaustic and various other materials with each new piece I made. I also began purposefully keeping a notebook of sketches and ideas for future works.

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Getso Blue, from the Running Stitch Series, 2010. Encaustic with mixed media, 12” x 12”.

Red No. 3, from the Running Stitch Series, 2010. Encaustic with mixed media, 10”H x 8”W

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3) Learn about the Context and Think about the ConceptI began to realize that I needed some conceptual underpinning for my work because I was unable to answer to my own satisfaction the question of what my work was about. Was it only built on formal considerations such as composition or color? I had been operating from what I would call an Abstract Expressionist point of view, which was that my work did not need any meaning outside of itself; that it was more about intuitive process and experimen-tation than ideas or concepts. But even if that were true, my work fell somewhere in an art histori-cal context which I could find by studying the work of other artists

For more information about Nancy: http://nancynatale.net/

Photographic credit: John Polak, JohnPolakPhotography.com

and examining the meaning that artists, critics and historians gave to their work. This would allow me to see how my own work related to the larger world of art and understand it from a different perspective. I also needed an underlying concept to move my work from disjointed experiments to finished works of art.

4) Find Your Concept (I Remembered Memory)I did not have to cast about too long before I realized that memory and memory loss were occupying a large part of my attention. As my elderly mother slipped into dementia, I was seeing at close range the extent to which memory plays

an integral part in personality and how memory loss alters a person’s ability to function. Since this subject had come to occupy such a prominent place in my mind, I allowed it to occupy a similar place in my work.

5) Invent the MetaphorWhen I began thinking about books as metaphors for human memory, I knew that I had found a physical form for my subject. All that remained was to experi-ment with the many old books I had rescued years before and carted around until the appropri-ate moment. I began by making two small series using books, tacks and encaustic on panels. The End is Near and the Beginning is at HandFrom that point, it all seemed to fall into place: I defined and simplified my materials and superimposed the gridded orga-nization. The final step was using a hot tool (the shoe) instead of a heat gun or torch to give me the very specific fusing I needed to control the encaustic application. The Running Stitch sprinted into my life.

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Array 111, 24”x24” encaustic

Eileen P. Goldenberg

My paintings explores material, color and space by combining ordered, repetitive elements with visual texture and translucency, taking full advantage of encaustic’s ability to tease the eye, simultaneously revealing and concealing. I paint organically, letting my emotions lead the way, literally feeling my way into each piece.

The thousands of tiny orbs seem at first to be identical, but like humans, they are in fact all distinct and individual. Look closely and you can see the razor sharp outlines that contrast with the soft blending of luminous subtle color. I meticulously add layer upon layer of molten wax, submerging feelings that will later be revealed, giving them a life of their own.

www.eileenPgoldenberg.com

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Howard Hersh in his studio

Detail of Lefts & right

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When Howard Hersh sets out to make a painting, the process is in motion long before he melts the pigment and wax. After over 25 years of creating artwork, his subconscious has become a vast subliminal repository of references, perceptions and sensibilities. As he works, he taps into this, following intuition, memories, and imagi-nation, and so the painting begins. Hersh considers it critical to his creative practice that he spends time in his studio daily. Whether or not he picks up a brush to paint, or a pan to pour—he spends time there, living with his work and the process of making his art. Following his passion, this time spent in the studio contributes to a lifestyle of total immersion. This habit supports Hersh’s ability to have strong vision and awareness as he works. Referring to nature “his dominant muse” this influence is intrinsic to his work. He recalls spending early childhood years playing in the woods, camping with his family, and later, being part of the “back to the land” movement of the 1960’s. Hersh describes these events as having profoundly impacted his psyche and being inherent to his identity. These earliest childhood experiences inform his work today. A self-professed non-academic artist, Hersh downplays the importance of historical context but values his current connections to life, nature, and the world around him. He views each body of work as a continuum—that which was created last year and yesterday is connected to the work he creates today. As he works on an individual painting, each piece takes on a life of its own. Because encaustic has no drying time, he prefers to work on one piece at a time. The exception would be when he becomes stumped on a painting, at which point he may decide to start another one—until he can figure out what’s required with the stalled piece. Putting down the paint, pouring the wax, making marks, choosing color, and making decisions while working to resolve the painting is a very fluid process. Says Hersh: “Each painting initiates a dialogue with me. Sometimes this is a quick and easy process, and

TOTAL IMMERSION:

LAYERS OF LIFE AND WAX

How San Francisco

Abstract Artist Howard Hersh

Approaches His Art Practice

By Lynette Haggard

“Each painting initiates a dialogue that I must engage

in.”

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Hersh’s studio at Hunters Point Shipyards

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sometimes it’s a downright struggle. As the painting develops, some questions are answered and some new ones appear. This is the process of creativity for me.”

PROPERTIES OF WAVES AND PARTICLES Hersh has completed about 30 paintings in the Waves and Particles series, started in 2010. He says: “Sometimes I like to use titles to lead the viewer into ways of thinking that they might not take. For example, some of the concepts that I like to evoke for the viewer might be the contrast and difference between what is seen or unseen; the subtleties between intuition and knowledge; thoughts and actions; intention and results.” In Waves and Particles, his intention is to suggest that energy and matter are really all there is. The pulse (waves) of the universe is what articulates and forms matter (particles). While this phenomenon is quite scientific, waves and particles create a nice metaphor for many other principles. Within the paintings themselves, the gently curved lines represent “waves” and the circular pools of paint, the “particles.” Hersh claims to refer to a previous work in order to give context and a jumping off point for the new one. Analyzing that and what he considers the strengths and weaknesses of the work, he then attempts to steer the new painting in the desired direction. Referring to the Waves and Particles series, he says: “Since the concept of the Waves and Particles has not changed, this leaves me with mostly aesthetic decisions about how to create a more successful picture.” Some considerations for him while assessing a piece include: is the piece too busy or too empty; too graphic or too subtle; too big or small; too colorful or too monochromatic.

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Marquee, 72” X 64”

Houston, 72” X 216”

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“I see nature as my dominant muse.”

BEFORE RELEASING WORK INTO THE WORLD Because Hersh (and most artists) work in isolation, he must rely on himself as his own most serious critic. There are questions of the individual piece being resolved, but also the larger criteria of whether the direction he’s going with the work is adequately fulfilling his aesthetic and goals as a communicator. That being said, before Hersh feels that a painting is ready to leave his studio, the work must pass his criteria. When he considers each piece, he also considers whether the work is achieving what he wants it to communicate to a viewer. Once he has fulfilled his process, the work is complete and released to the public.

LYNETTE HAGGARD is an artist, blogger and writer living in the Boston area. A founding member of New England Wax, she is also an invited presenter at the National Encaustic conference. Haggard holds a BFA from Philadelphia College of Art.

Howard Hersh is represented by: Butters Gallery, Portland, Oregon, Addington Gallery, Chicago, NuArt Gallery, Santa Fe, and Gallery One, Nashville. For additional information: http://www.howardhersh.com/artstats/hershstat.html

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Thanks for putting on a wonderful conference! (Encaustic Art Institute)

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For additional information: www.encausticconference.blogspot.com For registration: www.castlehill.org

When: September 22 – 25, 2011Where: McMenamins Edgefield Manor, Troutdale, OR Who: IEA Members. New members may join at time of registration for $75. Cost: Early registration: $325 before May 1, 2011. $425 after May 1st. Includes eight meals. Registration deadline: August 15, 2011Lodging: Hotel costs are not part of the retreat fee. You must make your own hotel reservations with McMenamins Edgefield Manor. They have very affordable hostel type dorm rooms, family rooms that sleep 5-6 and private rooms. Costs start around $30. Email Manuela for info on room sharing. Need other lodging options?Meals: Friday breakfast through Sunday lunch are included in your registration fee. Transportation: Several options are available to you on the details page.

For additional information and registration: http://www.iea-retreat2011.com

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Just,Breathe, 24”x24”, 2011

Kim Bernard, Spirendulum,Process, 2011

Encaustic Arts: How did you begin working with encaustics? Kim Bernard: Before I had ever heard of encaustic, I used microcrys-talline wax in my sculptural work during my years at Parsons, where I received my BFA in sculpture, and later in the lost wax bronze casting process. In the late 1990s, when I was searching for a medium to bring color into my sculpture, I started seeing encaustic in galleries. I was drawn to the versatility of the medium as well as its viscous and tactile qualities.AE: And now you teach others how to work with the medium?KB: Yes, I love to share what I know with others. I’ve been teaching part time for 24 years, and recently returned to school myself to get my MFA at Massachusetts College of Art and Design. Mostly, I teach at the Maine College of Art and throughout New England as a visiting artist, but I also teach workshops around the country. I had a residency in Key West in January where I taught encaustic and exhibited my work. I’ll be teaching workshops in Arizona and New Mexico this month. In the summer I hold a variety of encaustic workshops in my studio in Southern Maine: Intro to Encaustics, Next Level Encaus-tics, Exploring Dimensionality, Encaustic & Wax Resist and Ceramic & Encaustic. AE: Do you teach anything besides encaustic?KB: Yes. I teach a workshop I call The Creative Habit that I’ve designed to help emerging artists to not only examine their studio practice but to develop themselves professionally. So many artists have no idea how to present themselves to a gallery and need some guidance. I have also designed a workshop called Movement, Mark Making & Mindfulness where students develop an awareness of their body in space and explore their personal kinesthetic language through the practice of yoga, breathing and meditation to inform their personal,

WAX IN MOTION

Questions & Answers with Kim

Bernard

My work has become an

exploration of movement.

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Lissajous, Medium, 48”x24” 2010

visual language of painting, drawing and mark making.AE: Movement is an important component in your work. Why movement?KB: I started dancing when I was three and have tried everything from ballet, jazz and tap to belly dancing, salsa, African dance, Greek dance, you name it! Years ago, I studied and taught Kenpo Kung-Fu. Just last summer I took a course in aerial fabric and trapeze. For the last four years I’ve been practicing Ashtanga yoga. I just love movement and it has been as consistent in my life as my studio practice. Several years ago I started question-ing why these two loves were separate. I started exploring how to merge my art and my movement. It’s taken me on a wild journey. I’ve become fasci-nated with physics, how things move, kinesthetics and muscle memory. My work has become an exploration of movement. Sometimes it’s about gesture, sometimes it’s kinetic sculpture, sometimes I use mechanical devices to create a mark and sometimes I make the mark as a record of my movement. AE: Tell me about the wax pendulum you created…KB: I was doing research at the Boston Museum of Science a year ago and became intrigued with the sand pendulum there. I saw that I could replace the sand with hot wax to make a mark and track the pendulum’s movement. I designed and cast, at the MassArt foundry, an aluminum pendulum specifi-cally for encaustic. I have been creating a body of work with it that I call my Spirendulum Series. These pieces involve encaustic panels that I position on the studio floor to receive marks made with my wax-drizzling pendulum that I swing, push and propel. Often I suspend the pendulum from one pivot point which gives me a symmetrical, round design, like in Spirometry. If I hang the pendulum from two points, as

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Spirometry, 36”x36”, 2010

Set In Motion, 36”x48”, 2010

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in Lissajous, I get more of an infinity design. The way I set the pendulum in motion, with what amount of force and in what direction, determines the wax mark it makes. I have become quite adept at controlling the mark and predicting where and how the pendulum will swing.AE: Do you work with mediums other than encaustic?KB: Yes, the list is long… I’ve worked with clay, steel, stone, wood, lead, cement, springs, and all kinds of drawing materials. I also love video because it allows me to capture movement. I use whatever I need to communicate my ideas. It often takes me into unknown territory, which is very exciting.AE: What are you up to now?KB: I have an installation going into the Biennial at the Portland Museum of Art, so I’m working on that and coordinating volun-teers because there’s a perfor-mative component to it. It’s a kinetic sculpture made up of 17 cast wax droplets that hang and bounce from cables and steel strips that are attached to the wall and need to be activated… that’s where the volunteers come in. Next, I’ll work on some new encaustic sculptural work for an exhibit at the Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill in conjunction with the 5th National Encaustic Conference. I’m always creating work for the galleries that represent me. Plus, I mentor MFA students and give individual consultations with emerging artists. There’s never a dull moment!

More about Kim:www.kimbernard.com

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Etherea

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For more information about Stephanie:http://www.stephaniehuerta.com

Stephanie Huerta

This piece is the 3rd in my new series of Ethereal Portraiture.The first step in this process is taking a life-cast mold of the model. I then cast it in Hydros-tone, and back it up with a few layers of plaster bandage to add strength. After it cures it’s time to cut the skull and place the antlers (which were carefully chosen for each piece) . I plaster them in with more hydrostone and plaster bandage. For hanging I designed and fabricated a system similar to flagpole attach-ments. I plaster in rebar, after I seal it with shellac, so it doesn’t rust and discolor the plaster, and that slides and locks into the wall attachment. The piece is now ready for the encaustic. My tools of choice are the Iwatani torch and electric skillet for heat. I also use the line of encaustic tools put out by Sculpture House. On this piece I layered many colors on the corset area and scraped back through, after cooling to expose the rich colors through-out. I use the torch to create a smooth shiny texture on the rest of the form. With hydrostone you need to be careful not to over heat because it can become brittle. Other than that I find it to be an outstanding material to work on with encaustic. You can be extremely creative and sculp-tural with it.

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Left: Fractal and Flora, Triptych, 40” X 82”, Layered Encaustic Monotypes. Right: Disappear, 80” X 78” X 6”. Layered Encaustic Monotypes (12). All prints with back lighting.Photo: Bernard Handzel

A Butterfly Affect, 50” x 31”, Encaustic, Graphite, Transfers on Paper.

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DANCING BETWEEN

IMPROVISATION AND DISCIPLINE

A Conversation with Paula Roland About

the Process and Poetics of Her Work

Paula Roland is one of the most experienced and accomplished artists working in encaustic today. She’s had dozens of one-woman shows and won multiple awards, including one from the National Endowment for the Arts. After years of teaching painting and drawing in colleges, Roland began developing and popu-larizing the little-know process of Encaustic Monotypes. Her workshops in monotype making and other encaustic techniques regularly sell out. Roland holds an MFA from the University of New Orleans. For Encaustic Arts Magazine, she talked about her work with writer Gretchen Reynolds.

GRETCHEN REYNOLDS: How would you describe the main themes of your work, Paula?PAULA ROLAND: My work embodies thoughts and ideas about nature that are at a deep core of self, from the small but mighty force of a blade of grass pushing up through concrete, to the natural force of a hurricane. I observed this collision between nature and humans growing up on the Gulf Coast and it is still at the heart of my work. By using spontaneous processes and unpredictable materials, the works mimic the complexity and diversity of nature herself. I want the forms to seemingly emerge out of nothing, like a natural force.

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Disappear, Side View, 80” X 78” X 6”, 12 Encaustic Monotypes Cut and Layered, with Back Lighting. Photo: Bernard Handzel

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GR: You’ve been exhibit-ing successfully for more than 30 years. How has the work changed? Stayed the same?PR: The work looks quite different, but the themes and motivation are similar. I’m still fascinated by the intersection between nature and culture and have a continued interest in combining or stretch-ing boundaries. A drawing can be done with paint; a painting can be a sculpture; and a print may become part of an installa-tion. The work has become more inclusive of current influences and interests. Chaos theory, fractals, systems, ideas about beauty and abstraction in art, spirituality and much more--these all show up in the work. I’m still very drawn to materials and processes, espe-cially those that are slightly out of my control and require improvi-sation. In the 1980s and 1990s, I used media that dried quickly, requiring action and response and could not be reworked. These had to be completed in a few hours and yet revealed the drama and poetics I wanted. Encaustic painting and printmak-ing are even more of an impro-visational dance. The conscious mind gets out of the way and allows the body to act intuitively and imaginatively. The biggest change is that there is a reductive quality, an economy of means, because I’ve made a conscious decision to limit color and non essential elements. This gives the work a quiet focus. The monotypes foster absorption, a meditative, internalized rhythm, while stim-ulating countless avenues for exploration.

GR: What’s your working process? How do ideas develop?PR: I start with a lot of research and free experimentation. When I become intrigued by a discovery, I proceed with more intention and set limits in terms of materials, color, process, etc. There is only one best way for each piece or series to be made and some

ideas will incubate for years. I read my own work, as if it were being done by someone else. It’s an interesting process of self-discovery that helps me find deeper meaning and a clear path. I make art because I really want to see the next piece.

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Disappear, Detail

Peony, 7” X 10”, Detail of Installation For the Bees,Encaustic, graphite, natural beeswax on board

For more information about Paula:http://www.paularoland.comhttp://www.RolandWorkshops.com

Ahead of the Buzz, 50” X 31” Encaustic, Graphite on Paper

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GR: Your recent large-scale installation, “Disappear,” is spectacular, with its layers of colors and phos-phorescence. What inspired that particular work, and how in the world did you make it glow? PR: I was experimenting with melting multi-colored encaustic beads and ribbons on my giant HOTbox™, observing how the island-like shapes flowed and joined other shapes. It reminded me of the time I flew over the Louisiana coast in an airplane and the amazing sight of the cellular land forms, disappearing, being reclaimed by the water. “Disappear” consists of 12 large encaustic monotypes, three layers deep, joined together and suspended from the ceiling. The melted wax renders the paper translucent and light can pass through. “Disappear” is lit from the rear by wall-mounted fluorescent lights which are hidden and diffused by the paper and wax. In addition, the paper is pierced and cut to resemble lace. I wanted to make a piece that reflected both the beauty and the fragility of the land, and the lace-like quality supported that. The piece has come to represent vanishing landscapes everywhere.

GR: What’s next in your progression as an artist?PR: A few ideas are calling to me. One is to make 3-dimensional wall and floor pieces of paper, similar to “Disappear”, with glowing light behind. Another is to work with collage using encaustic print “parts,” which could be an interesting commentary on fragmentation and completion and how disparate ideas suddenly fit together. Also, I keep thinking of

working very large again, using my whole body to make paintings that resemble abstracted maps. Overall, I will let the work lead me to its best expres-sion. It’s organic.GR: Will you always work in encaustic?PR: I can’t imagine not. It has all the magical, unruly qualities and endless possibilities that I like. But the work’s content dictates the method and materials. It’s about the ideas, not the medium.

I wanted to make a piece that reflected both the beauty and the fragility of the land,

and the lace-like quality supported that. The piece has come to represent vanishing

landscapes everywhere.

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For more information about Paula:http://www.paularoland.comhttp://www.RolandWorkshops.com

Paula Roland’s• Encaustic Workshops• DVD: Encaustic Monotypes-- Painterly Prints with Heat and Wax• Anodized Aluminum Plates• HOTbox™

THE ONE AND ONLY ROLAND ENCAUSTIC

HOTbox™

RolandWorkshops.com PaulaRoland.com

THE OPEN STUDIO LLC., SANTA FE, NM

Mining the Unconsciousart exhibitions/community programs inspired by Carl G. Jung’s Red Book journal

June 17 - August 28, 2011Santa Fe, New Mexicofor complete information:

www.miningtheunconscious.org

Betsie Miller-Kusz. “Corazon Salvaje”Stephanie Lerma. “She Is and Always Will Be”Jayne Levant. “Sea of My Dreams”

EXHIBITIONS

Mining the Unconscious. June 17 - August 21. Santa Fe Arts Commission Community Gallery201 W. Marcy, Santa Fe, NM. Opening June 17, 5 - 7 pm

Mining the Unconscious II. July 8 - August 7, Santa Fe University of Art and Design1600 St. Michael’s Drive, Santa Fe, NM. Opening July 8, 5 - 8 pm

Mining the Unconscious III. August 6 - August 28. The Encaustic Art Institute18 County Road 55 A, Cerrillos, NM. Opening August 6, 1 - 6 pm

From left to right: Daniella Woolf, Wendy Aikin and Judy Stabile

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Remembering the last encaustic technique we saw or tried, and where we left the instructions can be a challenge. How many times have we gone to a conference or class, learned a technique that we thought was pretty cool, but didn’t incorporate into our studio practice right away? Then later we scramble to find the notes, the sample, or the handout. One solution is to go back to one reference point, such as a sample book. Working on paper is a wonderful way to experiment with a variety of encaustic techniques. Paper is inexpensive; requires less wax than a panel; is the perfect surface to document your methods; and takes up less valuable storage space in your studio. When we were making our DVD, Encaustic + Paper, we thought it would make sense to pull all of the techniques we taught together into a single project. We settled on a simple bound sample book. So, here are the instructions for the sample book and two Encaustic + Paper tech-niques for you to try.

Wendy Aikin, Judy Stabile, Daniella Woolf

Encaustic + Paper: A Sample Book

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Techne`

Finished Booklet

Book Diagram

Making holes with the awl

Sewing the book

Tieing the square knot

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Wendy Aikin: Bookbinding classes are wonderful; I’ve taken a few, but they are not my favorite thing. Bookbinding is an art. It requires precision and accuracy. I’m not precise or accurate, but I can pull off a simple pamphlet style binding. It only takes a few minutes and doesn’t require an arsenal of tools: an embroi-dery needle, some waxed linen thread or dental floss (preferable not mint), an awl, a pencil and a piece of paper. This method works with a small manageable number of pages. If you bind too many pages together, they won’t turn properly.

Pamphlet Style Binding:

Arrange the pages. If you measure like I do, you might want to try my paper folding technique. Take a piece of scrap paper the size of the book (you only need a strip). Fold it in half, and then in half again. Lay the paper into the fold. At each crease in the strip of paper, mark the pamphlet. Clip your pages together so they don’t slip. Punch thru the pamphlet with an awl where you have marked. Cut the thread three times the length of the paper, thread your needle, and follow the diagram. From the inside of the book to the outside of the book, sew down through “A” with a single thread leaving a tail of three to four inches. Sew up through “B” down through “C” and up through “A”. Tie a square knot and your pamphlet is complete.

We’ve also posted the instructions on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1DDNcb3MEk&feature=youtube_gdata_player.

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Techne`

Rust Photo

graphs

Rust on paper

From:

Daniella W

oolfTo:

Michael Pearce

Subject:Photo of rust

Date:

Friday, April 29, 2011 11:04:45 AM

Here you go- big enough?

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Rust on Wax Daniella Woolf: Rust is a great colorant for paper and encaustic. You can find rusty bits on walks, or get uncoated steel washers at your local hardware store. Big box hardware stores sell washers with a protective coating on them, which will not rust. So you will need to procure washers, or other metal pieces, without this protective coating. I look for interesting shapes, and textures in the metal I use. Many solutions will rust metal. My preferred technique is to use a solution of white vinegar diluted 50% with water. Any paper will work. I like to use Rives BFK, a fairly heavy print-weight paper, because my local art supply store sells it in packs of 100 for the best price in the US! I spray the paper with a 50% water and white vinegar solution then place the metal to be rusted directly on the paper. To get more bang for my buck, I lightly spray the top of the metal, then put a second piece of paper on top, and weight it; this will create a ghost print. I also use a piece of a sheer silk organza, gauze or thin, light-colored natural fabric in between the top and bottom layers of paper, so the rust goes thru the cloth and prints onto both the cloth and layers of paper. Finally, I put a weight on the top paper. It takes anywhere from 6-24 hours for the rusting to do its magic, depending on the temperature and humidity in your location. You can take a peek, or simply leave overnight, while you’re doing other things. It’s a great way to do passive multitasking! You can also rust directly onto encaustic medium or encaustic paint. After the rust dries, simply paint encaustic medium over the rusted areas, fuse and continue to rust, adding as may layers as you desire.

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Techne`

Bleaching the paper

Bleached paper

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Bleach on Paper Judy Stabile: Bleach is something I use sparingly around the house (as I’m disinclined to do housework when I could be in the studio). Using bleach at my studio is entirely different. A bleach pen enables one to create fabulous patterns and drawings on colored paper. The bleach causes the paper to change colors, resulting in a rich and beautiful contrast. Brushing medium on the treated paper can provide stunning effects. You can find bleach pens in your grocery store in the laundry detergent aisle. The pens have two tips (wide and narrow), and contain bleach in a gel form. Because bleach fumes can be irritat-ing, I think it is best to take this project outside. For protection, wear gloves and old clothes, or an apron. Lay down a layer of plastic/and or paper to protect the surface upon which you are working. Place your paper on the newsprint, shake the pen to activate the gel, take off the cap, and start drawing. The line of bleach will be slightly raised, and will spread. When you are finished, let the bleach dry completely. When the paper is no longer wet, and the bleach looks crusty and cracked you are ready to remove the excess bleach from the paper. Use a paper towel or soft cloth to gently brush the dried bleach off of the paper, and apply medium. This will “stop” the action of the bleach. You will love the effects that you can get with this method. We just returned from a trade show. While there we were introduced to a product that performs just like the bleach but is non-toxic and won’t eat holes through your clothing. We will probably have it in stock by the time this article goes to print.

In the next issues, you will be inspired by a variety of techniques presented by different artists. We invite you to experiment, document, and gather your waxy explorations into a sample book.

For additional information and Wax Works West: http://www.waxworkswest.com

R.R. Jones is responsible for all the photographs. Visit his site here: http://www.rrjones.com

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Techne`

Explore a variety of techniques using encaustic paint on paper in this fun, informative DVD.

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10th Anniversary Memorial Dedication Designed and built by Douglas Mehrens 2011

The sculpture consists of a 36’ round garden base with 6, 8’ X 6’ glass panels set in a double triangular form. Visitors can meander around and thru the sculpture. Each glass panel represents one of the significant memories from that momentous day: The World Trade Center, The Pentagon, Flight 93, Police and Firefighters, All other responders, and the last panel the warriors who have given their all to defend our liberty.There will also be 6 sculptures, by various New Mexico artists placed equally around the perimeter of the memorial. These pieces will be regularly renewed. On Sunday, September 11, 2011 at the Encaustic Art Institute, there will be a dedication ceremony of the permanent sculpture commemorating the 10th Anni-versary of the 9-11-2001.The all day event will start at 8:00 AM Sunday, September 11, 2011 with a moment of silence at the time each event happened (8:46 [North Tower], 9:03 [South Tower], 9:37 [Pentagon], 10:31 [Pennsylva-nia]). The dedication will be led by local fire-fighters, police, military and interfaith clergy. The remainder of the day will be an open house in the EAI Gallery through sunset. A special commemorative show of EAI member’s art will be on display.

9-11 “We Will Never Forget”

Encaustic Art Institute, 18 Country Road 55a, (General Goodwin Road), Cerrillos, NM 87010

For more information, email: Mehrens@eainm.com, or call (505) 424-6487

Email: Mehrens@EAINM.COM

The 10 things you didn’t know about bees:

1Honey Bees are the only insects that produce food for humans.

2Honey Bees pollinate 25% of ALL the foods humans consume.

3Honey Bees make an average of 1,600 round trips in order to produce one ounce of honey.

4The average honey bee worker (female) makes 1/12th teaspoon of honey in her lifetime.

5Approximately 8 pounds of honey is eaten by bees to produce one pound of beeswax.

6Honey is the only food that includes all the substances necessary to sustain life.

7A 12-19 days old bee produces wax through 8 wax glands.

81,250,000 bees are required for producing 2.2 pounds of wax. The antennae are used as trowel when constructing the combs.

9Queen bees will lay as many as 2,000 eggs on a good day, an average of one every 45 seconds.

10Honey bees must visit some 2 million flowers to make one pound of honey

By Stephanie Huerta: http://www.stephaniehuerta.com