in flight

“Keep in touch with your soul by developing your technique. There are no mistakes, so… just work. The more you work the more you’ll figure out if that’s your bliss.” ~Fernando Araujo

in flight, encaustic on wood, 6×6 inches

So this encaustic piece was totally different when I arrived in my studio this afternoon. It was really simple. Two colors, the white and the blue and a transfer I had done using a photo of some tall grass that I took while we were on Orcas Island earlier this year. I really liked it. I just needed to work on it a bit more….

…and then I kind of ruined it. I always say that things are never ruined, they just need to be adjusted in some way. Well, this time, it was really ruined. I was more than slightly irritated.

But I decided to make the best of it. And did another transfer on top of the first transfer. And this was the outcome. I’ve never done a transfer on top of a transfer, and I like how it came out. I will have to try this again in the future, with deliberation.

I have to say that creating photocopy transfers on top of wax is one of my favorite techniques that I learned from Trish Seggebruch. You just need to lay down a black and white photocopy onto your wax. Burnish. Then wet the back of the paper with water and rub away the paper pulp. It’s just like doing a transfer with acrylic gel on paper.

I saved that quote from an art newsletter that I used to get. I don’t know if it necessarily applies to this piece in particular, but it is definitely an important thing to keep in mind.