Back to Wax

In Process

oil sticks for drawing

Many brilliant colors to choose from. These are small blocks  of concentrated pigments suspended in encaustic medium.

The wax is heated to 250 degrees and becomes liquid. The thermometer sits directly on the heated palette so I can monitor it during painting.

The Paint

Warm and Ready




 

The Laboratory

I heard this week from the Brooklyn Art Library that my "sketchbook" was received and it now on tour to it's first destination, Austin, Texas. The exhibition will begin March 12th at the Austin Museum of Art.

Art journaling has been an important part of my creative process. It is one of the activities that I feel is important for my growth as an artist, and more importantly as a person. Being able to write my thoughts and create in the safety of a journal meant for my eyes only is such a freeing experience. But at times a page does become art, ( serendipity, if you will ) and I tear it out, mat it, and frame it for all to see. By now I have quite a collection of them and thought I'd share a few photos.

And Finally....The End

Detail of the inside back cover

The very last page

A detail of the fabric cover I made. I added vintage buttons and stitching for a little pizazz!

Back View

Back view

Just a few more.......

 

 

 

 

 

And some more pages..........

Just Playing Around

 These are stems from Beech Mushrooms I used as a stamp to make a print. Never a dull moment at our house, I do get inspiration from the strangest places, and my hubby just goes along with me. 

.

Mushroom Stem with acrylic paint

Stem print made with a Beech Mushroom stem in sepia ink

Teabag from my herb tea

Pomegranate Pizazz

We had a beautiful bunch a fresh beets and decided to roast them for dinner. The liquid from them was the most incredible color and I couldn't throw it out. So I grabbed a piece of paper and dyed it with the juice. The shibori piece was created by wrapping the paper around a paint stirrer and scrunching it down and holding it with a rubber band. I don't know how colorfast it will be, but I love the way it came out.

Shibori with Beet Juice

Sketchbook Project 2011

This is a detail of one of the collage pages. Antique book pages were glued to watercolor paper and then glazed with acrylic paint.  After it dried I lightly sanded the surface with a scotchbrite pad. This gives a nice sheen to the paint. The large numbers are black paint dry brushed through a stencil. At the top heavy gold yarn is stitched through the paper as an embellishment. The scratching on the surface is made by making a heavy application of paint and glaze and scratching through with a stick.

Collage pages

Pencil Drawing of mushrooms used for the spore print

This is an image transfer made from a copyright free book.  I've lightly antiqued
the image with a stamp pad in a yellow ochre color to help it blend in.