| J & M Enterprises Newsletter |
Fun Easy Art
September 2009
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 Ideas To Try,
Never hurts to review.
When setting up your work area just a few tips to keep yourself
organized. I like to first put down something to cover the table so
that is protected. A heavy cloth or paint paper that comes in rolls at
the paint department in hardware stores. I get the big rolls because
I teach so many classes. Then the computer paper that is the old
pin feed type is great because you just tear off a page when it has
too much wax on it for a clean sheet. Otherwise you just keep pulling
wax back on your painting.
You can use a pad of Kleenex on the side to have handy to clean
your iron. I also love to have Kleenex handy to create other surfaces
by sinking into the wax and of course the painting with Kleenex
effect.
You will also need waxes, painting cards and the iron. Run a multi-
socket
extension cable block from your power supply to the work
area with the sockets
situated on the side where the heated tools
will be. This is important because there are a lot of power surges
that happen and the tools are sensitive and need protection. Right
side if you are
right handed - left for left handers. The waxes will go
on the opposite
side to the tools - left for right handers and right for
left handers.
Being set up this way makes your painting a lot more fun
and if you work small you can take this anywhere and be
set up very quickly. I like to pack my tools in one of those
yarn carts on wheels with the pull up handle. I can pack everything
I need and be off and running at a moments notice.
One of the ways I advertise my classes and also when I have a show
in our gallery is to set up and paint on the sidewalk usually on a busy Saturday when lots of folks are
around. I love to chat with while I am painting and
the kids are always fascinated with the process. I usually end up giving away a lot of these small painting to the kids for free. The end result is
a lot of the parents end up taking my class.
Beautiful colors, all
inter-mixable, create a range that has led a multitude
of people into
the creative & fascinating world of encaustic art.
Encaustic Art Wax Blocks are produced to a carefully developed formula
with concern for a high sense of quality & safety. They do not contain any resins.
Any particular encaustic paint mixture will have in its own unique behavior
& working manner depending on the waxes chosen, type of pigments used,
inclusion of other materials (e.g. resins) & of course the overall quality
of ingredients.
Any particular encaustic paint mixture will have in its own unique behaviour
& working manner depending on the waxes chosen, type of pigments used,
inclusion of other materials (e.g. resins) & of course the overall quality
of ingredients.
Differing Liquidities of Encaustic Art Wax
Block Colors
Each of the encaustic art wax block colors behaves in a slightly
different manner.
Some are very transparent while on the other hand, some are completely
opaque and dense (like white chalk hiding the black color of a blackboard).
In this range of waxes opaque colors are any that contain white and a
couple more.
Use light liquid colors for fluid skies and darker stickier ones
for fore-
ground strength.
The liquidity or flow qualities of the waxes are different too. As a rough
guide the lighter colors are more liquid (fluid) than the darker ones when
they are all melted at the same temperature. Also the hotter the temperature
the thinner the wax consistency. Set the iron's temperature using the No.
8 Blue-green color so that it slowly dribbles down the iron
like this...
 
You can see different colors melting at their own rate above. While this is true I actually have found that I can work quite well just set exactly on the
low setting on the iron. If I need to adjust it might just be one notch right or left.
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Tools
Hot Air
Hot air tools offer great possibilities and potentials for creative
and artistic encaustic art work.
The market place is full of
DIY shops where electric paint strippers are available and hair dryers
can be obtained from any good hair salon. There are many qualities
and factors involved in use of these tools and no tool types will operate
in exactly the same manner. Investigate....
The main factors to consider are:
* Heat range & its controllability - a good thermostat
for accurate & safe operation, ideally from ambient
temperature to 600C.
* Air flow volume & speed - the force with which the blown air
emerges, ideally a variable air flow speed
* Air flow shape - various attachable nozzles that
will concentrate the blast or alter the the active air flow
Many hot air guns & pretty much all hairdryers have a set
of switches to control the air flow speed & the heat generation setting.
However, the better hot air guns will have the ability to select any temperature
within the hottest & coldest range of the tool. This is usually managed
by use of a rotary dial, like the one shown here, although some are sited
on the side of the hot air gun, but are usually then less accurate.
Some of the hot air guns will have an added visual facility
that displays the temperature currently operating in the unit. This is
usually a strip of lights that glow red as the unit heats up. This is a
useful aid but not vital.
I used hair dryers for several years but finally gave in because I wanted the extra control and got on of these heavy duty guns. Costly but never been sorry.
Restrictors are available as snap on nozzles of various
shapes. The most commonly useful shapes are cones which come in various
diameters. These reduce the size of the outflow orifice, thus forcing the
air to move faster & in a tighter space. They have the effect of creating
a more focused blast that is easier to use if you are actually blowing the
wax colours around & also limits the heating to a smaller work zone area.
Over-restriction can cause the units to overheat, so use nozzles made by
the same manufacturer & for the same model of tool you are using.
One of Michael Bossoms examples of hot air work.
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Upcoming Class Schedule
September
September 30th - October 5th Art & Soul Portland 2009 Embassy Suites Portland--Airport
7900 NE 82nd Ave.
171 European Style Encaustic Painting
- Sun Eve 3 hours $80.00 + 25 supply fee ($21.00 wax block kit to keep)
131 European Style Encaustic Painting Monday
all day. $145 + $35 supply fee
($21 wax block kit to keep)
Register online with Art & Soul at the above link.
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Visit my artist owned gallery located at 508 Main St. in Edmonds WA.
or visit the web site.
One of the oldest artist owned galleries in Washington, formed in 1961 as a non-profit 501-C4 corporation.
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Click to
Join My Mailing List!
or
Do you know an artist friend that might be interested in this information? Just use the forward button below to send them a copy of this email.
Fantasy In Wax
One of my hot air images
Lets face it wax is just too much fun. Once you put your hand to it you are hooked for sure. I hope these newsletter will inspire you to give it a try and if you are already a fan perhaps some ideas for you to expand your efforts.
All the best.
That is it for this month.
The holidays are a good time to think of giving sets for gifts.
Remember those grandkids.
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Thanks for your continued interest in wax painting, my website and, blog, and now my e-newsletter.
Sincerely,
John Vandebrooke
J & M Enterprises
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Waxingitup.blogspot.com
My blog:
Painting Tip:
So many times someone will say oh I could never do that because I can't draw. Well to be honest I am not that hot a drawer either, but why let that stop you.
If you look at a lot of pictures in art journals or your own photographs you can get a lot of ideas that are worth a try to see if you can reproduce that image in wax. Now it might not be the same, but a lot of times it will give you new ideas for different layouts to practice.
Also if you want to reproduce an image you have seen an want some extra help try taking some carbon paper and after you have put down a wax background you could trace the image onto the wax. This gives you the outline for you to follow and you just might be surprised at your results. Some artist use a projector to enlarge images.
If you remember the image from last month of the lady where I created 3D cloth with Kleenex, I actually did that process with the image by tracing her outline first on a waxed background.
If you trace the image on the card stock first you will find that the carbon will smudge so you have to be careful. When you do it on a waxed surface you have a lot less trouble with that.
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Free Instruction
35 video clips to watch.
Series 1.
Series 2.
Series 3.
Hope they help you and inspire you to give wax a try.
Talk about tools! There is no end of ideas.
There
are lots of commonly available hand tools to choose from and many more
to adapt.
In fact anything that will help move or manipulate the wax
colours into the forms, patterns, lines or spreading that you want can
be happily embraced. This small selection is by no means comprehensive.
A piece of serrated torn card can be as effective as the most expensive
tools, provided its results are what you want to produce!
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Waxed Image
Someone sent me this image and asked me to try to wax it. Here is the result.
Here is an example of painting on black card stock. Try different background colored stock for great effects.
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This was an attempt to copy an image I saw in a art journal. Same with these images below.
Might as well throw in an abstract hot air image done without the clear wax to make it brighter.
You just have to remember to watch the heat level as without the clear wax underneath it can burn the wax trying to move it.
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