Photography
Since childhood, I have been surrounded with artistic endeavours with my mother being a potter and painter. My parents bought me a camera at age 7 and only provided black and white film on a limited basis but I always found it rewarding when I could capture what I saw. My first 35mm camera in my teens opened the door to landscape and night photography.
I sold some early images back in the 1980’s during and after the time when I was an aerial photographer in Canada’s Arctic. But I have only recently got back into it, learning about digital photography rather than “analogue” or film. I am currently exploring astrophotography, night photography, some macro photography and mainly landscapes. I am also experimenting with manipulating the emulsion on slide film to create some bizarre abstract images.
My photography tends to represent what pleases my eye. Occasionally I look for a scene that I have imagined but mostly I record the reality before me. Patterns, contrast, tension and mood speak to me and hopefully I can capture the moment.
Encaustic Painting
Encaustic painting is an ancient painting technique and involves the mixture of beeswax, damar resin and oil pigment to create a medium for painting. Each layer of wax medium has to be fused to the lower layer using a heat gun or torch. These layers allow the painter to produce texture. Some translucent qualities can also be created.
I am mostly self-taught, reading voraciously about encaustic painting. I have also taken a number of workshops learning about encaustic painting. This medium allows the artist to embed objects, transfer images, include photographs and numerous other techniques. This allows me to combine my love of photography with painting and mixed media.
Workshops/Training:
Travel Photography, Learning Annex, Toronto, ON
Figure Photography, Learning Annex, Toronto, ON
Street Photography, Kodak Seminars, Toronto, ON
Encaustic Painting, Michael Csafordi, Prince Edward County, ON
Intro to Encaustic Painting, Andrea Bird, The Hive, Alton, ON
Photo Encaustic, Tania Willems, The Hive, Alton, ON
Photo Encaustic and Cera Colours, Joya Paul, Second Doors Studio, Toronto, ON
Encaustic Painting, Ann Shier, Second Doors Studio, Toronto, ON
Mixed Media Encaustic, Christina Lovisa, Collingwood, ON
Gallery Showings:
Reality: Vanishing in Plain Sight, Propeller Gallery, Toronto Oct 3-20, 2019
Shifting Environs: Arts Etobicoke – Annual Spring Juried Art Show, March-April, 2020
Altered Images at Hand, Propeller Gallery, Toronto Apr-Jul, 2021
Layers of Meaning, Propeller Gallery, Toronto Jul 7-Aug 1, 2021
IMPACT 2021, Neilson Park Creative Centre, Toronto Aug 9-Sep 6, 2021
Making Your Way, Southampton Arts Centre, Southampton, ON Oct 6-31, 2021