Above: Blue Poem, 2007, 30" x 30", wax, oil, and ink on panel, from the From Where I Came series of paintings

Below: In the between light & texture series I covered each finished painting with a layer of wax and oil.  Then I tore up the surface to reveal what was left and begin again. Perfect metaphor for our lives: we all begin in innocence and as life goes on, we earn our scars.

This technique has been dated to as early as the fourth century B.C. Although wax may appear to be a fragile material, some encaustic paintings from A.D 100-125 survive today in the form of head and shoulder wax portraits set into mummy casings in Greco-Roman Egypt.

To prepare the encaustic medium, I melt beeswax and add damar, a hardening and stabilizing agent, then filter and cool the mixture for later use. It usually takes a day to make up a large batch. For more details see the Encaustic Painting Slide Show.

When I am ready to paint, I melt the wax mixture and add pigment in tins sitting on griddles on my studio table. I use a brush to paint the encaustic onto a panel, which lies horizontally on my table so that the melted wax doesn't run. I paint swiftly, often only a few strokes at a time, for the wax cools very quickly. After I've applied a layer to the panel, I use a propane torch to reheat the wax, smoothing the surface a bit and bonding the new layer to the one below. I continue to build up layers of wax with pigment added, heating it after each layer with the propane torch. This layering lends an ethereal quality that is part of the appeal of an encaustic painting. In some paintings I add other materials—paper, linen, twigs—to create a collage effect. Some paintings have 10 or more layers of wax; others are more gestural in feel and involve less layering.

For information on the durability of encaustic paintings and other details, please see encaustic painting FAQ.

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