Greetings, Art enthusiasts and creative souls!
Welcome to White Rabbit Fine Art Gallery’s brand-new blog! Together, we’ll venture into various artistic techniques. Today we’ll explore the fascinating world of encaustic art or encaustic painting: a medium that has stood the test of time and continues to amaze with its unique qualities and striking beauty.
Encaustic painting is an ancient technique, dating back to the Greeks and Egyptians, in which pigments are mixed with hot liquid bees wax. Artists change the paint’s consistency by adding resin and pigments, pigmented wax, inks, oil paints or other forms of color. Encaustic wax has many of the same properties of oil paint: it can give a brilliant and attractive effect that enhances brushwork. The paint and even found items of interest are applied to the base in layers. A heating element is passed over the surface. Bases are usually wood, plaster, or canvas.The burning in of colors is an essential element of true encaustic painting.The artist uses heat lamps, torches, heat guns to fuse and bind the medium. Encaustic medium is thermally malleable, it can be sculpted or the added materials can be encased to become part of the canvas. Heated metal tools, such as spatulas, knives other scrapers, and brushes can manipulate the medium after it has cooled onto the surface.
We are fortunate to have two fine artists showing their work In the White Rabbit Fine Art Gallery in Travelers Rest, South Carolina. I spoke to each of them to learn more about the art form and why they are attracted to it.
Rebecca Cook is one of our talented permanent artists has realized artistic accomplishment with the encaustic process. Rebecca already has beautiful other art forms on display in our fine art gallery. She tells me that early in her artistic endeavor with acrylic painting she became curious about other types of art. Through her research she discovered the treasure that is encaustic. There was little information at the time but that didn’t keep Rebecca from learning through workshops and practice until she became proficient. She then began to expand on her knowledge by breaking some of the many rules associated with the art form. She loves the tactile nature of encaustic and the depth that results in this process. Her work is clear evidence that she takes full advantage of that depth in her art pieces. We are proud to show her work.
Donna Persinger is our newest guest artist at the White Rabbit Fine Art Gallery. Donna is obviously excited about this art form and was eager to share with me for this blog.
She is inspired by colors and textures of the natural world and allows her intuition to guide her on her journey to create each piece. She loves the elements of nature and has a fondness for the living creatures within. She takes time to learn all she can about nature’s creatures, such as bees; their habits and importance to our world. Donna includes those themes in her work. Donna also enjoys utilizing found objects and discovering ways to repurpose them. She has been known to include the colors of rusty objects to enhance her art, as well as the textures of wood.
Come visit us and marvel at the fine work currently on display. And, when you fall in love with encaustic remember our art is there for view and for sale.
Thank you to both of our artists, for sharing their thoughts and inspirations for this blog. And, thank you, art enthusiast, for joining us on this artistic endeavor. Stay tuned, monthly for more insightful explorations of various artistic techniques that will enrich your appreciation of art. And remember, stay curious, and keep creating!
Until next month, I remain Artistically yours,
Karen L. McCarty/White Rabbit Fine Art Gallery
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