Smothered Mate by Laura Wait
The ancient medium of encaustic seems to elicit ideas of unbridled experimentation among its practitioners, who artistically wax poetic about the possibilities inherent in making works of art out of combinations of melted beeswax and paint, pigments, natural resins and a plethora of other materials.
The 20 local and national artists exhibiting in the gallery's 5th Annual Encaustic Invitational express no particular common theme in their statements except experimentation. Many talk about how the process of making their creations brings them joy. Some seem to be playing around with notions of both paying attention to surfaces but also stratification of various layers. Others apply foreign objects and extraneous elements to add a collage-like component to their pieces.
Glowing colors, complex textures and subtle patterns are what they use to express and capture a universe of emotion, thought, play, spirituality, nature, time, aesthetics, history, human existence and, perhaps most important and even most ubiquitous for this particular medium, the evocation of sensuality.
Participating artists include: Debra Blair, Emily Clawson, Molly Cliff-Hilts, Fanne Fernow, Barbara Gagel, Diana Gonzales Gandolfi, Eileen P. Goldenberg, Cari Hernandez, Deborah Kapoor, Allyson Sanburn Malek, Mari Marks, Catherine Nash, Nancy Natale, Jane Allen Nodine, Gwendolyn Plunkett, Margaret Suchland, Donna Hamil Talman, Rodney Thompson, Laura Wait and Deanna Wood.
The 5th Annual Encaustic Invitation show will flow or glide or maybe slide into the Conrad Wilde Gallery, 439 N. 6h Ave, #171, on Saturday, March 6 with a reception from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. and an artists' talk at 5 p.m.
Showing March 6 to March 27, the gallery is open Tuesday-Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Call 622-8997 or visit ConradWildeGallery.com for more information. The gallery also offers encaustic classes.
