Encaustic Revival

A Tray of Many Colors

Jasper Johns is credited with reviving the use of encaustic paint for contemporary artists. It is said that he wanted something that would help his paintings dry faster, and he remembered hearing about the wax paintings of ancient Greece. So, voila! the old becomes the new again!

After Johns' show at Leo Castelli Gallery in 1958, many other artists were mesmerized by encaustic's spell, including Brice Marden, Lynda Benglis, Nancy Graves, Kay Walkingstick and Arthur Dove. Today many contemporary artists use encaustic.

 I began using encaustic in 1996 when there was little information available about the medium. Trial and error is a great teacher! Today there is plenty of information both on the web and in print. One of the best information resources on the web is R & F Paints, who specialize in encaustic paint and pigment sticks.

When I am asked about my work and I reply that I work in encaustic, many people wonder what encaustic is.  If you click on the Buzz page above, you'll find some historical information.

The real question is why? Why use encaustic instead of oil paint or acrylics or any other paint? That's for the next post....

Looking for Comments

One of the best descriptions of how to comment on a blog is the one penned by my fellow classmate, Karen F. Rose. We are in the Blog Triage class that is expertly led by Alyson Stanfield and Cynthia Morris.
Sometimes this new technology is a steep learning curve for those of us who did not grow up with an electronic life. Karen aptly describes commenting on posts on her blog My Painting Journey. Give it a look and then pen a comment to me here,

Series or Cereal? That is the Question (pardon me, Mr. Shakespeare)

Artists create their work in many different ways. I prefer to work in a series format, while others like to be more random in their subjects, styles, and content, like many cereals.

What is a "series?" you may wonder. A series is a group of like-minded, like-themed, on-topic works that explore a central idea. To work in a series format allows you to spend time with an idea, to develop it or to abandon it for something else. For me, creating in that fashion allows the process of making art to unfold in a personal and meaningful way.

How do I decide what idea to explore? First and foremost, the idea has to have some personal resonance for me; it has to substantially relate to my world. When something speaks louder than the rest or when Sera (short for serendipity, or the Holy Spirit, if you will), keeps reminding you again and again, that topic has  significance for you. For example, many years ago my husband and I thought about a taking a trip to Santa Fe. As never before, the city came up in conversations, in print, and on television...others were mentioning Santa Fe before we had a chance to say that we might go there!

Zola on the Couch ©1992 Kathryn Dettwiller, Oil on Canvas, 18 x 24"

From 1992-1995, I painted my dog, Zola, a brown standard poodle. The Zola Series was a time for learning about myself and channeling those various facets into a surrogate form, Zola. She appeared in almost 50 paintings, ranging from serious representation to downright wacky portrayals.

Portrait of Zola, Frontal  ©1992  Kathryn Dettwiller, Mixed Media on Paper, 28 x 21"

   

I Don't Think We're in Kansas Anymore  ©1992   Kathryn Dettwiller, Oil on Canvas, 36 x 36"

Cleaned Up & Fixed Up

A Cleaned Up & Fixed Up corner in the studio. This makes me smile!

I feel lighter and ready to go to work.

Who would have guessed that this is the same corner that I photographed on August 18th, before the closet was built?

Blogging for You and Blogging for Me

I have been blogging since May 2010 to the World-Wide Ether, just trying to get a feel for the process and the commitment. Having a wandering commitment hasn't served me well. Like learning a new skill or technique or, more to the point, learning to use the "new technology", blogging has been a challenge.
Since blogging is a self-driven activity, it has been very easy to avoid...until now.

I have signed up for an online course, Blog Triage, which #1, I paid money for, and #2 requires homework completed timely. Why? I needed the incentive to proceed.

Fresh out of the gate, our fearless class instructors Alyson Stanfield and Cynthia Morris, have started with a basic question: who do I want to visit and read my blog?

Initially, I am writing to keep friends, family and collectors up to date on my work and my activities. By providing a glimpse into my world as an artist I want to share the influences, the inspirations and some of the challenges that are addressed in the final product, the actual art itself. I believe that this kind of information will enhance their experience of viewing not only my work, but the work of other artists.
As time goes by I hope to broaden my audience and connect with curators, other artists and art professionals who would support my work.

In my initial post, A Painter Speaks, I wrote about my focus for this blog, which is informing viewers while informing myself. I would like to become more proficient in verbalizing about my work, both orally and in the written word. Since composing with words is far more difficult for me than composing with shapes and colors, this blog will hopefully engage the reader in some measure while it engages me in a different language of expression.

I've Missed Painting

Is it the fall air? I've missed painting. The stand-up kind. I had a discussion not too long ago about working methodology. For several years, I have worked with encaustic and it is most agreeable to work with the work flat, that is, parallel to the floor. The arm/hand movements are necessarily short and contained. After all, the wax cools so quickly that a short stroke is all you get, unless you heat it and move it around. Oil painting, though, is so different. The strokes can be however you like them to be. And if you change your mind, well, you can just do it differently. And I am a "stander" when I paint.
A couple of weeks ago I began some encaustic paintings on Claybord, smallish ones, 12x12". Before I realized it, I was dancing with the paint and an electric spatula...all over the surface. It was fun!!

© 2010 Kathryn Dettwiller Desktop Stack, Encaustic on Claybord, 12 x 12"

For a good while, I have made contained work. Easily contained on the surface of the board. But these, wow, these spilled all over the edges and I used some thread to visually rein in the shapes. To contain the bedlam of color and shape, I put a tiny thread fence that is useless.