For those of you who have known me, know that I found my first true expression of art making with pastels and more specifically in the plein air style. However, after years of working for Enkaustikos and learning all the ins and outs of working with encaustic I decided I needed to offer the people who take my workshops a little something different, something that felt natural to me.
I've never been one to sit in front of the easel for long periods of time working on the same piece. My nature tends to do many sketches of the same subject matter until I feel as though I have a sense comprehending the the light quality, the patterns of line and rhythm, the colors that are always in harmony. Ultimately, after the sketches a painting usually happens, but in a quick and gestural way.
This was the format I used when offering Plein Aire with Encaustic at Linwood Gardens and the results from the participants was so rewarding. Many of the women in the workshop had little to no experience with plein air, let alone working with encaustic. I found that so much of working with pastels really fueled my ability to convey what was important in this workshop and I am already planning more more of these classes.
Please enjoy just a few of the paintings created in this workshop by the participants.
