Encaustic Gesso or Milk Paint

I like starting my paintings on a white surface. It is not necessary if you have a quality board and intend to use plenty of rich encaustic colors.

Here is an encaustic painting that I started on a birch panel with just a base coat of clear encaustic medium

I have used the specialized encaustic gesso and it is good, but since I can't buy it here in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico and the shipping cost is as high or higher than the price of the product, I started using milk paint for white surfaces about 9 years ago. I can buy that from the Old Fashioned Milk Company and have that shipped here. Since it comes in powder form, the weight is much less than the encaustic gesso; therefore less money.

About 9 some disparaging responses; giving me all the reasons that it would not work. The main derogatory comments came from someone who sells encaustic gesso.
I proved her wrong during the last 9 years. The milk paint surface is perfect. It is non-toxic, pure and receives the encaustic paint beautifully. The major complaint was that it would not keep and would turn into a smelly mess in a couple of days. Well, I just mix up the milk paint powder in water for the amount I will use. On the occasion that I have left over paint. I cover and refrigerate it.

Applying the white milk paint to a board.

I prepare all the boards in my encaustic workshops with the white milk paint, so the students can just start applying the encaustic paint.

For the "Lightness of Being Series" I always start on a white surface. The absorbent milk paint is a perfect base for the watercolor washes and diluted ink shapes. This is the result of the first couple of days of abstract washes.

Here is the diptych I finished this week. It won't be part of the gallery show that opens August 3, but maybe next month. The panels can be sold separately as complete paintings.

What Have I Done?

I just got these two big boards from the carpenter. When I ordered them, 100 cm x 150 cm, ( 39 1/2" x 55") , I did not plan ahead. I went to pick them up Saturday and found that they were too big for my little car. I ordered a truck for Monday morning. When I got to the carpenter's workshop, the driver wasn't there. Not surprising in Mexico. I drove home and my daughter offered to use her larger car to retrieve the boards. They are now in my studio, overwhelming everything else, including me. The first free day I have this week, I will start with a few layers of white milk paint.

I wonder if I had been feeling very creative when I ordered them, or just ridiculous. These will be the largest encaustic painting I have ever made. Finishing the 48" x 48" Tetraptych was exciting enough to make me take on the challenge of creating an even bigger encaustic painting, or two. I will post process photos.

The last creation of the Lightness of Being series 48" x 48"

Process of an Encaustic Painting

This painting started out as watercolor and diluted inks on a couple of layers of milk paint. Then I covered that with clear encaustic. I wanted to keep layering, pushing back the color and pattern and adding more shapes and mark making on continuing layers.

It turned out I wanted more and more white and the only way I could achieve the look I wanted was to paint in white encaustic that had been softened with clear medium.

At the end of each day, I would think, "It is finished", then the next morning when I looked at it I felt "No, it still isn't right" Finally yesterday afternoon I feel it is finished and time to more on to another in this series.

And here is the process:

After the first layer of encaustic medium.

I didn't like the composition with the three shapes in the center and the heavy black shape on the left.

I turn the abstracts around on the easel for a different view. The middle shapes are softened and the heavy black shape is being scraped and layered over.

center shapes are changing; more white over the top black shape.

That shape that is on the left in this view still isn't right

I am happier with it now and call it finished. Lots of white was added.

A horizontal view

Happy Holidays

This is an old oil painting that I did many years ago. It lives in San Francisco now

 

 

 

And a  Happy Hanukkah to my Jewish friends.

I had been traveling for 10 days in the state of Veracruz and planned on posting many photos of my wonderful trip along with a story of my adventure. I used my iPhone camera to take these precious images, but when I tried to download them to the computer, I couldn't, so I will try again when Mercury Retrograde is over, but in the meantime I want to wish you all a happy, healthy holiday season and a prosperous new year.

I have been posting an image a day on Instagram and this one has been the most liked. It is very different from previous work, and I am wondering if I can create some more in this vein. It is cold wax and oil, 24" x 24" and I titled it "Waiting"

Intrepid. Really?

A friend posted a comment on my Instagram feed about my latest painting, "Roller Coaster" and said, "As always, you are nothing but intrepid." I smiled and thought I like that word, it  means; "fearless. adventurous" That is what I want as an artist.

My greatest love is figurative art and I can get emotional and teary eyed when I see brilliant figurative art. When I say figurative art, I mean people. I know that a still life is considered figurative, so don't try to correct me. It is faces, bodies, expression, bold brush strokes that evokes passion and gives me that falling in love feeling.

Now back to abstract - non objective painting. I like that too, and I know that it can be challenging to make a painting that does not look like colorful vomit. Yes, I am critical. After 63 years of working as a professional artist, ( My first job right out of art school was in the art department of a book publishing company), I give myself permission to be opinionated. In everything I paint now, I want to push my boundaries and make something I have never created before. That may not be commercially advantageous, but it keeps me excited.

Roller Coaster oil and cold wax

Yes, the same artist (me) painted all of these.

Is It Abstract or Non-Objective?

When I went to art school many years ago there was a distinction between abstract and non objective painting. An abstract was recognizable objects changed to make them more interesting. Think Braque, Picasso. Non objective was just as it sounds: no object. Now it seems that everything not realistic is called abstract. What do you think about the labeling?

Braque

Picasso

 

 

 

 

Here is my first abstract done in 1953. Casein on illustration board

Non objective painting in progress, 2017, cold wax and cradled panel.

How would you classify this? encaustic, oil and cold wax and cradled boards.

Not Too Pretty Anymore

If you saw my last post, you know I was not satisfied with the latest White Glove series. ( I am going to have to change the name, since I want to include black gloves also.)
I took a week's break from painting; 2 days for private  encaustic students, see  ezshwan.blogspot.com.
Then I took a few days off to nurse a sore throat. Today I got back in the studio and "unprettyed" several paintings.

beginning

Today- more work on this one tomorrow

working on 4. It's best that way so I don't over work,

from this...

to this.

Placing Art

viewing room

studio at sunset

viewing room and stack filled

Today I finally was able to place art in the living room. Now I have art in all the downstairs rooms and the viewing room upstairs.

Also, it was important to me to make a pleasant outdoor scene. The yard had been sorely neglected for 3 years and the area on the side of the house can be seen from all the windows, that are really all French doors.

A couple of trips to Home Depot for plastic grass and white marble rocks along with lots of plants quickly made this section of the yard more pleasant. It has been a lot of physical work, but there now is a special place in the living room to rest and enjoy the view.

Cynthia is painting her huge bedroom and arranging her studio upstairs.

hallway

high ceiling can take a lot of art

A cozy spot for an afternoon rest

2 paintings fo the "Messengers" series

back year where there will be a lot of real grass

Getting better

Rediscoveries of Old Paintings

We still have a week before the moving day, but I have been going through things in the studio for 2 weeks. Yesterday my assistant and  I pulled every painting out of the stacks and I rediscovered paintings that I hadn't seen in years. One pile, I discarded. They had not stood the test of time, but others, I was happy to see again. Most of these were painted before I moved to Mexico 13 years ago and the encaustics were made the first years I lived here.