by Holly Wilson

I came from a world of working in clay. I began using bronze when I had the need to make my figures stand on a single delicate toe and balance as if caught in mid air.

While many other bronze artist work in multiples’, I made a decision at the very beginning to never make a copy or edition. That is how I worked in clay and I feel that each piece is a spirit and a life of its own, I am telling a story with each work and feel I cannot repeat that story.

Here are some images of the process in the studio.

 

It is the simple moments in the day that spark my imagination: the way a certain stick looks like a bird in flight, or the amazement of my son when he saw the inside of a geode rock for the first time. These moments begin to intersect, and the work grows from the many elements seen, found, remembered, or felt. These are the moments I hold in my mind when I create the work.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teaching this summer at Idyllwild Summer Arts in Idyllwild California 
Finding Form, Encaustic in the Third Dimension
By Holly Wilson
June 26 – June 30, 2023

Colored wax on a flat surface is just the beginning! In this workshop, we will look at materials and forms to bring your ideas to life, allowing you to create fascinating structures that leave the two-dimensional plane.

Material is an essential part of our visual language, so you will want to choose the materials you wish to speak with carefully. Along with your ideas, you will bring various materials; these could include wood, cardboard, metal, unglazed fired clay pieces, dried plasterwork, fiber, string, paper, objects from nature, or treasures you have held onto (a complete list of suggestions to follow). You will learn exciting ways to weave these objects into your work.

Experiment with how the materials may be dipped, painted, wired, glued, hammered, but most of all, waxed. You will start by making the encaustic medium to which you will add your pigment. Encaustic is a wax-based paint composed of beeswax, resin, and pigment, which is kept as a hot liquid on a heated palette, and then applied to an absorbent surface. In addition to safety practices, you will learn various techniques, including fusing, using transparencies, glazing, layering, building up texture, line making, carving, image transfer, mold making, and resin application with different surfaces. Returning students will learn new methods and may choose to work on advanced projects if they wish. Each student will finish up to two pieces during the week (using 3D and relief techniques).

Skill Level: All levels
Age: 19 years and above
Dates: June 26 – 30, 2023
One week session
Tuition, room, and board: $1719
Day student tuition: $840

Lab Fee: $120 – includes: encaustic wax, pigments, 2 12”x16” wood panels, propane, Rebound 25 Brush-able, resin, liquid plastic, use of wood-burning tools, griddles, propane torches, alcohol lamp, two metal tools.
You will be asked to bring additional materials.
Materials List: Coming Soon
Enrollment limited to 8 students

New link to the enrollment
Click here