The Encaustic Practice Pays Off

Finally, after weeks to months of learning and practicing, I have produced a photo-encaustic piece that I like! Allow me to show it to you, and then I will talk a bit about how I made it, in case anyone is interested:

The piece started as a printed photo which I mounted to a 12x12 inch cradled wooden panel with sides that I had painted black (a cradled panel is basically a piece of smooth plywood that is mounted onto a square or rectangular wooden frame that is about an inch or so thick, thereby becoming a three-dimensional object that is flat on top). Mounting the photo can be accomplished in several different ways, but I find using Scotch (archival) positionable mounting adhesive to be the easiest method.

I then painted on two or three layers of molten encaustic medium (a combination of beeswax and damar resin), fusing with a small hand-held torch between layers, achieving a fairly smooth surface. I wanted to leave the central tree area smooth and make the wax textured in the area of texture on the original photo. I accomplished this by using the ‘dry brush’ technique, where a coarse brush that doesn’t have much wax in it is used to apply the medium, leaving organic streaks and brush marks.

The colors in the image were then enhanced by using oil pastels, oil paint, and encaustic pigment sticks on the wax surface and then fusing it with a torch once again.

I like that one ends up with a piece that is three-dimensional and unique. Of course, I could repeat the process starting with the same initial photo, but the end result would never be the same. In addition, encaustic work is displayed without glass in the frame, which I think allows a more intimate connection between the artwork and the viewer.

Framing is also easy! In this case, as seen in the photo, I used an Ampersand floater frame which was very ‘reasonably priced’ at about $45 (have you walked into a frame shop lately?). The frame is about 1 1/2 inches thick from back to front and lays flush against the wall. It is also reusable, since the cradled wooden panel is screwed into the rear of the frame and can easily be removed and replaced with a different panel at any time.

I am really enjoying this type of work and plan to continue it, along with my ‘regular’ photography.

Get new posts by email:

Subscribe