Page 56 - Wax & Words

Beeswax as a collage component

This W&W eBook is not meant to be a comprehensive manual on the art
of encaustic painting. If you are interested in a more thorough exploration of
encaustic, I highly recommend my friend Michelle Belto’s book, Wax and Paper
Workshop. Michelle gives invaluable information on setting up an encaustic studio
and working with encaustic medium and pigments in myriad ways.

Setting up
You can create these small collages easily on a sturdy work table. You will need a
place to plug in your griddle or hot plate or electric skillet and adequate ventilation.
I cover my work surface with brown craft paper. Before I start, I cover the griddle
with aluminum foil to keep the drips of wax off the metal surface.

About the wax
Most encaustic artists use Encaustic Medium, which is beeswax mixed with Damar
Resin. This is fine for this project, but I have also enjoyed working with pure white
beeswax. It’s softer than encaustic medium, but I don’t build up multiple layers –
perhaps only two or three. I encourage you to try both and see what you like. The
wax provides a textural and visual enhancement to the underlying collage elements
and does not really serve as an image-painting medium on its own.

Safety first
Never heat the wax above 200°F (93° C). You want the wax hot enough to flow
easily from your brush to the painting surface, but not so hot that it smokes. Use
appliances with temperature controls. Warning signs that your wax is too hot include
an acrid odor and smoking.

If you happen to get a bit of hot wax on your skin, don’t try to wipe it off while it’s
warm, but run cold water over your hand until you can peel the cold wax off safely
without hurting your skin. My simple wax set-up - a griddle with temperature control
set at 200F, an aluminum loaf pan (you can use a tuna
can), an inexpensive natural bristle brush, a scraping tool
(optional). See the video, next page, for details.

Wax & Words 56