Wayne Thiebaud, “Bakery Case,” 1996

I went for the cakes (there’s something deliciously subversive about all that sugar) but ended up falling for his newer work – vertiginous, playful landscapes – a few of which are on view in this nice slideshow by the Sacramento Bee.

Of course, Thiebaud’s paintings are right and wonderful as they are, but I can’t help wondering how even MORE wonderful they’d be if they’d been rendered in wax. Thiebaud has a fantastic brushstroke that’s both indulgent and restrained. it’s hard to see in reproduction, but he makes these careful linear strokes and then mars them with goopy flourishes. It’s a sensual technique that seems ready-made for encaustic.

I’m a sucker for museum gift stores and picked up this sweet little book Counting with Wayne Thiebaud when I was there. Its cropped reproductions show Thiebaud’s brushstrokes fairly well.

It’s nice to know that, at 88, some people still paint like rock stars.

Ha! This NYTimes slide show about the jelly art of Sam Bompas and Harry Parr is just… fun.

Susan J. Thompson has a new show of encaustic paintings hanging at the K. Saari Gallery in Steamboat Springs, Colorado this month. The show is called “Cat Walking.” I’ve yet to see it in person, but the postcard looks delicious. Congratulations, Susan!

Two encaustic paintings at the Macky Gallery in Boulder

Open Studios has a reputation for eclecticism and this experience was no different. A diverse range of 2-D work – from ab-ex acrylic paintings to prints, pastels and nature photography – were represented. I’d have loved to share more images with you, but the gallery monitor sure was on her toes! No pictures allowed, except of my own paintings…

“A New Pair of Shoes” (left) and “Bear” (right) at the Macky Gallery

(I love those creamy walls!)

The 15 artists represented were Eric Batliner, Laura Bigger, Jessica Bernstein, Laura Carpenter, Douglas Goodin, Lael Har, Julia Lunk, J.E. McPhillips, Susanne Mitchell, Pamalyn K. Simich, Joanie Simon, Sallie K. Smith, Diana W. Tripp, and Laura Tyler.

The artist’s names above link to their websites where I could find them. Overall, this show was good survey of the current state of 2-D artmaking in Boulder… Diverse works, some traditional & some new, with a strong nature/landscape theme running through.

It has a wonderful bee-like quality, don’t you think? All those people! Doing all that stuff! All those honeybees! All that stuff!

C.B. I Hate Perfume
Do you love the idea of scent as art but hate regular perfume? If so, I joyfully recommend C. B. I Hate Perfume to you. It’s a wondrous perfume gallery in Williamsburg, Brooklyn with over 300 scents to take in (if you can). The offerings range from a few specialty blended perfumes to a collection of singular accords with names like Old English Novel, Suntan Lotion, Ginger Ale, and Wet Mitten. It’s a magical place. Swoonworthy, actually. If in Brooklyn, you must go.

Richard Serra at the Gagosian
Those of you into encaustic painting should check out Richard Serra’s show Solids at the Gagosian. The show – which runs through December 20th, 2008 – features a series of topographical drawings made with paintstick. (I wonder what brand he uses?)

Here’s a bit about how the drawings are made from the one-sheet at the show.

Melted paintstick is poured onto a hard surface on the floor or a table. Sometimes a sheet of window-screen is placed on top of the liquid paintstick. Then the paper is laid down, either on top of the screen or directly on top of the liquid paintstick. Pressure is exerted on the back of the paper with a hard marking tool and the front side of the paper picks up the mark. In this series no direct drawing is done on the front of the paper… In the Solids series, as the layering of gesture increases, so does the accumulated mass and perceived weight. The effects of compression, torsion, the surface tension of the material and, finally, gravity, all work, as the paintstick coalesces to produce widely varying textures.

So basically… printmaking. For me, these pieces are all about their compositions. The textures are interesting. Integral, even. But it’s the compositions, seen at mid-distance (those raggedy edges!) that thrill me.

Garden of Earthly Delights
Did you ever wish you could see the Hieronymus Bosch painting, Garden of Earthly Delights, interpreted in dance? I didn’t! But I had no idea how beautiful it could be. Martha Clarke’s production at the Minetta Lane Theater captures the joys and horrors of being human in a sensual, scatological, ariel dance performance supported by live musicians (percussion, cello & wind). The painting’s always been a favorite of mine in a Where’s Waldo kind of way.

To see it bigger, click here. It’s intense, I know. But that’s life, eh? (At least in New York.)

A group of scientists have dug up a 3000 year old apiary in northern Israel. It’s the oldest one found to date. The photo accompanying the article is beautiful. It’s hard for me to make out exactly what’s going on but the repetitive ovoid shapes remind me of honeycomb found in the wild.

Here’s a funny quote:

“Many scholars assume that ancient Israelis made honey from fruits such as figs and dates. Nowhere does the Bible mention beekeeping as a way to produce honey.”

Huh?

Ha! This is brilliant. It’s a NYTimes story about Berlin artist Christoph Niemann’s adventures in making fine art reproductions out of bathroom tile. If you ever wanted to see Joseph Beuys’ butter art reproduced in a bathtub… today’s your lucky day…

Sleeve 22″ x 15″ encaustic and cyanotype on panel

One of the biggest pleasures of the Montserrat Encaustic Conference was taking in the conference’s three encaustic shows.

ON THE EDGE – NEW WORK IN ENCAUSTIC
It was an honor to have a piece (above) in this thoughtfully curated show. Check out Laura Moriarty’s Juror’s Statement for more info.

HUE AGAIN: PAINTINGS BY JOANNE MATTERA
As beautiful as encaustic work looks in books, it’s always, always better in person. There’s something about the wax medium, the way it holds light and shows depth, that’s difficult to capture with still photography. So although I’ve long been an admirer of Joanne Mattera’s colorful paintings I didn’t experience them in a real way until I saw them in person. They have an expansive, emotional quality that reminds me of sound or singing. I’d have loved to look at them longer & hope to see them again soon.

The photos I’ve seen of Joanne’s work are great, by the way… as good as encaustic photos can be. They’re just not as spirited as the actual objects are. I wonder if movement, subtle movements made by the viewer when encountering a painting (breathing, shifting) have a role to play in how encaustic is perceived.

THE DIPTYCH PROJECT
Presenting work born of a long-distance collaboration between members of New England Wax and the International Encaustic Association. You can read more about their process here. Interesting to note… each of the participating artists I talked with at the conference told me how hard it was to collaborate with another artist on a single painting. Some beautiful artwork resulted.