Ultramarine Blue Pigment
Ultramarine Blue has a fabled history. It is naturally derived from the semiprecious gemstone lapis lazuli. It gets its name from the Latin, meaning beyond the sea, since the best source of lapis was in the northeastern corner what is now Afghanistan. (more…)
The staff at R&F Handmade Paints would like to send a big THANK YOU to all of our friends who came out Saturday night for the opening of DAYDREAMERS, the R&F staff show. (more…)
Cynthia Knott, Naiad, oil, encaustic, and metallic on linen, 40"x74", 2005
We are always thrilled when one of our customers gets well-deserved recognition. The latest instance was Cynthia Knott from eastern Long Island who recently received a Pollock-Krasner Foundation Award in October. (more…)
Richard attended this year’s conference which was held in Mobile, Alabama October 22nd - 24th, 2009. It was an opportunity to see old and new friends - artists, art historians, encaustic painters and oil painters.
The keynote speaker was Joel-Peter Witkin. Witkin presented a survey of his work and is known for his photographs of amputated body parts, cripples, distorted figures and composite compositions. They are often hard to take, but they are often directly linked (and often take off of) classical imagery, particularly old-master paintings. Witkin uses wax, at times, to develop surface effects on his photos.
An exhibit of work by SECAC artists contained about 50-70 pieces of which 5 works were encaustic. The artists were Erin Anfinson, Jane Allen Nodine, and Cliff Tierney.
The next SECAC conference will be held at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, VA. VCU is a hotbed of encaustic, thanks to Reni Gower and her Divas and Iron Chefs of Encaustic events. Plans are in the making for another encaustic event there for next year’s SECAC conference. Check back in 2010 for more info.
Ellen Koment, "Plantae #3", encaustic on panel, 15" x 15"
Richard will be a particpant in the upcoming Artist Talk on Arts panel discussion. ATOA is a New York based nonprofit dedicated to discursive and aesthetic dialogue.
The panel consists of artists involved with encaustic, who will explore the growing popularity of encaustic painting over the last 15-20 years. They will address the question of what in the climate of the arts and the times, has revived the use of this ancient medium. Ellen Koment (artist) will be the moderator. Other panelists include: Nancy Azara (encaustic sculptor and author), Michael David (artist), Joan Giardano (artist), and Gail Gregg (artist and writer).
The event takes place on October 30th, 2009 from 7pm-9pm. It will be held at School of Visual Arts in New York City, 209 E 23rd Street, NYC, in the ampitheater. $7. General Public, $3. artists and students, free for SVA students and faculty
If you are interested in attending, please contact: atoarsvp@gmail.com.
Following up on the excellent pictures of George Mason and his monotypes, we thought artists might like to see some additional options in the same process. All will be covered in an upcoming workshop taught by Paula Roland, Encaustic Monotype and Beyond, December 1-4, 2009 held at R&F in Kingston, NY as part of R&F’s Visiting Artist Series.
Paula Roland, Connecting Dots, each 40” x 26“ (with back lighting)
The contemporary nature of wax, combined with the spontaneity of the monotype, opens up endless possibilities for artists. This engaging process draws you in and gets you out of your conscious mind. Ideas come from the spirit of play. It’s been called “addictive” by more than one artist and a “meditation” by others. For Paula, “ …the encaustic monotype is a stepping off point and a way to extend the process to mixed media drawing, painting and even installation art”.
Roland will help artists develop works that match their vision by suggesting various strategies, techniques and learning experiences. Despite looking easy, it can be difficult to achieve your goals! Changes in approach, temperature, paper, and even pigment to wax ratio, all effect outcome and having an experienced guide is important.
Tracey Adams, Imago 4, 40” x 40”
One accomplished artist who has incorporated the encaustic monotype is Tracey Adams. Her wax prints, with elements of heated drawing, are often embedded in her paintings, as shown in Imago 4.
Kimberly Keller, Wax Collage/Print/Drawing
At one of Paula Roland’s recent workshops, Kim Keller created this drawing on the HotBox, the equipment used for the monotype (no press needed!). Kim combines wax printing, drawing, and collage with paper and string.
Catherine Keebler shows several calligraphic scrolls and scores of other prints created at Paula’s recent workshop.
The December workshop at R&F will coincide with a solo exhibition by Paula in R&F’s gallery. The framed and back-lit wax monotypes pictured above were shown at the 2009 Encaustic Painting Conference. For the R&F show, she will cut apart, layer, and reconfigure similar pieces into an installation. Paula will also exhibit new graphite painting/drawing on dipped paper. The opening is December 5—hope to see you there!
Summary:
Paula Roland’s Encaustic Monotype and Beyond Workshop / December 1-4, 2009 at R&F, Kingston, NY
Paula Roland Solo Exhibition at the Gallery at R&F / December 5, 2009, - January 23, 2010 / Reception December 5th, 5-7 PM with an informal artist’s talk at 5pm
George Mason is an artist from Nobleboro, ME with a long history of painting encaustic onto plaster. This month, he came down to Kingston for a week to experiment in our workshop with encaustic monotype. Image 1
Image 2
George came here loaded with elaborate and delicate stencils that he had drawn freehand and cut out in his studio. The stencils were part of a repeating monotype process, creating an interplay between encaustic’s molten chaos, the stencils’ rigid patterns, the absorbency of the paper, and ghost images from previous pulls. Image 2
Image 3
His first step is to lay a color on the palette. Image 3
Image 4
The stencil is laid over that. Image 4
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A sheet built up with the paint from unsuccessful pulls is reutilized by laying face-down over the stencil. Newsprint is laid over this and burnished with matboard shims and the blotter is pulled. Image 5
The palette now has the layer of white, the stencil, and the color from the blotter. A sheet of Arches Text is laid on the ghost. Image 7
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The paper absorbs the color. Image 8
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The palette is wiped clean and Egyptian violet is applied. Image 9
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The previous print is laid face-up, allowing the violet underneath to soak up like a slowly developing photo negative. Image 10, 11 & 12
George plays with endless variations on this process. Different papers create different effects. He particularly likes the way the metallic colors work in the monotypes, partially separating out from the wax and bunching up in ways that look to him like ice floating on water.
Learn more about George’s work at: www.georgemasonart.com
Interested in learning about Monotypes, click here to find out about our Visting Artist Workshop with Monotype expert Paula Roland.
Artist Cat Crotchett recently spent two weeks in Indonesia teaching encaustic workshops. R&F donated the paints used during the workshops.
Exterior View of the Workshop Space
Encaustic Palette and Torch
The first 3-day class held at Brahm Tirta Sari 2 in Yogyakarta, Java, explored batik art and how it can be combined with encaustic paint. Cat was “amazed at how quickly both the batik artists and the painters adapted to encaustic painting (and fell in love with it).” The batik artists incorporated canting tools, thin metal tools that are used to create fine lines and patterns. The artists also experimented with batiking caps, or stamps to create texture and incised marks.
Batiking Caps in a Cap Pan
The second workshop held at Taman Budaya in Yogyakarta, Java, and sponsored by Antena Projects, was for practicing Indonesia painters. Cat was amazed at how proficient and productive they were with the medium. “Participants…focused on developing one or two complete finished works of art per day of each workshop. Each of these images was impressive in its conceptual thoughtfulness and formal unity – something quite unusual for a workshop format.”
Ali Incorporating the Canting Tool
An exhibition of Cat’s work at the Gallery at the Culture House Barbarab Segaragunung in Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia took place in conjunction with the workshops.
Indonesia Painters Seated Around An Encaustic Palette
In the near future Cat plans to create “a body of work influenced by the experience of the cross-cultural workshops in Indonesia.” In addition an article by Dr. Mary-Louise Totton on Cat’s work and the cross-cultural encaustic workshops will be in Visual Arts International Magazine, a prominent art magazine in Indonesia.
Here are some pictures from a special collaboration R&F did with artists Debbie LeBlanc and Roosevelt Madison, two friends who took one of our regional workshops at Majestic Ranch in Texas with Gina Adams. Debbie lives in Texas, and Roosevelt lives in Los Angeles, so they used the workshop as a way to spend creative time together.
Debbie and Roosevelt wanted to come and work on some larger projects in our facility at R&F, but had such a great rapport with Gina Adams that they brought her along to help them with the technical aspects of their work. They did enormous poured wax panels which were very exciting to see, and got a massive amount of work done! It was such a great experience for all involved that they are now planning to make an annual pilgrimage to R&F.
"Piri's Voyage" / encaustic and pigment on paper / 30" x 40" / 2009
Join us for the opening of Sara Mast, “Excavating Wonder”, on Saturday June 13th from 5-7pm. Sara will be traveling all the way from Bozeman, Montana to give an artist talk at 5pm.
The paintings of Sara Mast explore a remote view of the world, as if seen through the technological eye of a satellite, or high-powered telescope. Masts’ work is wholly imagined, yet appropriates a range of scientifically accurate data from star charts to magnetic resonance images of neuronal dendrites. Elements of ancient languages intermingle with navigational artifacts of both sky and sea. The artist embeds layers of information that are revealed as if seen through geologic or archaeological strata. In Masts’ work, flecks of naturally pigmented wax gather and dissolve in forms that reference landmasses, clouds or cosmic dust and stars, expanding and contracting like living organisms. For more information or to view more of Sara’s work, click here.
