Posted on July 11th, 2010
 About every two weeks it’s Beekeeping Sunday where I don my alluring bee suit and check out my hive. This first video was shot on July 4th. It was still really cold in Portland but that was about to end. After a drippy, freezing spring we were treated to a blast of searing heat for several days in a row. I had to keep the hive lid propped open because the boxes were really hot. When the bees start collecting on the side and the hive opening, it means they’re trying to cool off the box. By propping the lid open, I helped provide a little more air. Their little wings were beating like crazy as they worked to cool the hive.
 We have some obnoxious raccoons in our neighborhood and I was really concerned that they would eventually get into the hive with the lid propped open. So today, I bumped up Beekeeping Sunday by a week and swapped out the winter bottom board for a summer bottom board. The winter bottom board is a solid piece of wood; the summer bottom board has a screen that keeps the boxes cooler. It’s like a little air conditioner. In this first video, I’m getting ready to swap out the bottom boards. My smoker pooped out so I had to stop the video and relight.
Yesterday, a big red pick up pulled up in our yard. It was this older, really friendly gentleman named Jim Barleen, a retired USMC sergeant. We started some bee shop talk and it turned out that he used to extract honey from my dad’s hives when my dad first started beekeeping years ago. Small world! Jim was looking for some yards in which to put a few of his hives. He told me that the Linden trees up and down Powell Blvd make wonderful honey and that the bees have been really producing this year. Bill suggested that I put on the honey super and see if I could get some honey.
 In this second video, my smoker is lit and I take apart the hive boxes, checking for queen cells. If queen cells start that means I could have a swarm which I really don’t want. I don’t think my neighbors would be too thrilled about that. I’m also going to put on the queen excluder and the honey super. The queen excluder looks like an old refrigerator grate. It sits on top of the two hive boxes and keeps the queen from moving up into the honey super and eating that honey. She’s too big to fit through the grate. Because the hive boxes are so dang heavy, I know the bees have made a lot of honey and I’m comfortable putting on a honey super so I might get a honey harvest this fall. We’ll see.
Unfortunately, my flip video cut out before I was able to assemble the boxes and show the queen excluder and honey super. Bummer! Oh well, I’ll show you next time. Now…it’s time to heat up my waxes and do some painting this afternoon!
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Posted on July 10th, 2010
Saturday, August 14th | 10 am to 3 pm – 1 spot left
$125 – all materials + supplies provided
You take 2-3 pieces of your original artwork home
FULL. Registration closed.
Paint like the Ancient Egyptians and the American Colonists! Since the beginning of time, humans have found ways to make paint and adorn themselves, their belongings and create beautiful art. Over time, artists developed their own recipes for paint, gesso and glue, tweaking and experimenting until they found the perfect blend of materials.
In this inter-active, hands-on workshop, you will make your own gesso, milk paint and glue. You’ll create 2-3 original pieces of art using the materials you make and finish your pieces with clear encaustic medium (molten beeswax + tree resin). Because the milk paint is so absorbent, it is a wonderful medium to use with encaustic. You do not need to know how to paint to enjoy this workshop as collage can also be used. This workshop is ideal for any level of experience.
This workshop is held at my studio, Pig and Panda studio, in SE Portland (near 82nd & Powell). Workshops + Classes are semi-private, up to four students. My intent in offering this course is to provide a supportive experience of self discovery where you can fully explore and engage in self expression while diving into the wonderful world of art.
What you can expect to learn in this 5 hour workshop:
- Studio + materials safety
- Working with environmentally safe, non-toxic earth pigments
- Intro + working with encaustic (molten beeswax + tree resin)
- Tools and materials
- Making gelatin chalk gesso
- Making milk-paint binder + pigmented milk paint
- Making waterproof essential oil glue
- Prepping wood panels
- Explore earth-friendly alternatives for art making
- Discuss how these materials developed and were used in art history
- Safe, water-based recipes for home use
Saturday, August 14th | 10 am to 3 pm
$125 – all materials + supplies provided
You take 2-3 pieces of your original artwork home
FULL. Registration closed.
Posted on July 7th, 2010
Saturday, July 10th | 10 am to 3 pm – FULL
You take 2-3 pieces of your original artwork home
Explore the myriad of possibilities with encaustic, an ancient and versatile medium that uses beeswax, tree resin and pigment. You’ll be delighted with the smells, warmth and luminosity of the wax when used in art. Anyone can work with encaustic, whether you’re an artist, a crafter, an eternal student, a collage artist or simply enjoy being creative.
This workshop is held at my studio, Pig and Panda studio, in SE Portland (near 82nd & Powell). Workshops + Classes are semi-private, up to four students. My intent in offering this course is to provide a supportive experience of self discovery where you can fully explore and engage in self expression while diving into the wonderful world of art.
What you can expect to learn in this 5 hour workshop:
- Studio set up + safety
- Tools and materials
- Exploring different heat sources, effects + fusing
- Prepping a wood panel and other substrates
- Working with wax medium, layering + colors
- Carving, scraping + inlaid colors
- Texture, collage + sculpture
- Technique, composition and concept
- History of encaustic + other artists
Saturday, July 10th | 10 am to 3 pm
$125 – all materials + supplies provided
You take 2-3 pieces of your original artwork home
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Posted on June 22nd, 2010
About six weeks ago I sadly discovered that my first beehive was dying. We don’t know why. It took a while for the hive to totally die. I was really disappointed and called my dad last weekend to let him know that my hive was officially dead. Lo and behold! He just happened to have one of his hives swarm that very day.
A swarm is when one of the hives produces more than one queen. There is only room for one Queen Bee so one of them has to leave and she takes a bunch of supportive bees on her exodus.
 Here’s a brief clip as I survey the swarm. I have to admit…it was pretty intimidating. I was a little dubious about wrangling bees.
The ONLY day that I was grateful for a cold and grey June morning. As you can see, the bees were clumped together and pretty sleepy. We moved the swarm from a cherry tree to my empty bee hive.
My dad bravely climbed up the ladder and started sweeping bees into the bankers box. Then he handed me the box and I poured the bees into the hive box on the back of the gator. I wish the video camera was working to get the first pour because it’s very beautiful. All the bees just pour into the box like honey. Dad swept the branch three times before we had about 90% of the hive collected.
 Here’s a video of the the other two pours into the hive box. At about 6:14 you can see how the bees clump in the box before I dump them out.
I keep a beehive because I love bees and their honey but also because I paint a lot with beeswax. It’s my way of helping the bees that help me make beautiful art. My bees have been home for a week now and I’m very happy. They’re very happy, too, and starving! We found that the first hive had only made a teeny amount of honey – about the size of a quarter. I’ve been feeding this hive four quarts of sugar water a day. It’s live having a newborn!
Posted on June 2nd, 2010
This year, June 25th, 26th + 27th, the 47th annual Lake Oswego Festival of the Arts features Luminous Layers Exploring Contemporary Encaustic.
This cornerstone exhibit is the most comprehensive display of encaustic paintings and sculpture assembled in the Pacific Northwest. Encaustic is one of the oldest forms of painting where beeswax, resin and pigment are layered and fused to produce a luminous surface that captures and transforms light.
See how artists melt, layer, scrape, sculpt and create their visions in wax. Lectures, displays and demos featuring some of leading encaustic artists will explore the techniques of this art form throughout the three-day Festival.
My 9-panel piece, Hibiscus, is included in the juried show. I’ll also be giving a docent tour on Saturday, June 26th from 2-5 PM followed by a demonstration using silk images and painting with encaustic.
This international juried show was curated by encaustic artist Cari Hernandez, Tom Burns, publisher and founder of Artworks Magazine and Kristina Butters, director of sales and marketing at Butters Gallery in Portland,Oregon.
For more information visit the 47th Annual
Lake Oswego Festival of the Arts.
The Lake Oswego Festival of the Arts is a major regional arts event presenting the creative endeavors of recognized and emerging artists and enjoys an outstanding reputation for bringing special exhibits of quality and diversity to a weekend that is accessible to everyone. Attracting some 25,000 visitors during the three days of the event, the Festival includes several art exhibits, food booths, music, Craft Faire and the special international juried and invitational show of encaustic art.
Posted on May 13th, 2010
Last month, on April 17th, I spent the day at Muse Art + Design on Hawthorne creating an encaustic painting for An Artist a Day, an annual event that auctions off original works of art to benefit Schoolhouse Supplies. This wonderful event is a great community builder dreamt up by Muse Art owner, Peter Rossing. Each year 30+ artists contribute their time and talent and spend a day painting in the Muse art window. It’s wonderful to see how different artists work and develop a piece. It was great to talk with all the visitors who came through the store to learn more about the work. I even got to spend time with some of my former students which was really nice! It’s also fun to see all the different kinds of artwork that are available for auction. The auction ends tonight, Thursday, May 13th. Opening bids are $75 and can be placed over the phone or via email. Join us tonight for the reception and auction from 6-8 PM. Below are some pictures from my day painting.
Here is my set-up. Very bright and comfortable. I enjoyed painting in a big window and having people watch and ask questions.
These are the first layers of my piece. There are about 8 layers here. People asked when I was going to start painting. It made me laugh! Building a surface is painting!
Here I’m fusing the layers of wax together. I love my new big blow torch!
I begin my paintings with a blind contour drawing by scribing lines deep into the wax. I need about 6-8 layers of wax before I can do this which is why it takes so long to get “to the painting” part. I also always paint from a subject. This day I was working from a photograph of a beautiful, purple hibiscus flower. Once the lines are carved into the wax, I drizzle hot wax, in this case Payne’s Gray, into the lines.
Once the drizzled color has cooled lines, I carve away the drippings which reveals an inlaid line of color.
After the lines are cleaned, I begin to add veils of color, building layer upon layer.
Here I’ve added red, yellow and other colors to the layers.
This is where I stopped at the end of the day.
Another three hours of building color, blending edges and fusing layers resulted in the finished piece. Come tonight and bid on this piece!
Posted on March 28th, 2010
Last weekend, a neighbor gifted me with her beehive. My dad, who is a retired-doc-turned-beekeeper quickly dashed over with full regalia to help in my new venture. Now, I own a smoker, brushes, assorted tools, a lovely, fashionable suit and chapeau, a bunch of bees and boxes. It happened rather suddenly, but that’s okay with me. I love bees.
You see, it was actually my dad’s beekeeping that led me to encaustics. I was looking for a new painting medium that had little waste, could last close to indefinitely (some encaustic paintings are 3000 years old) and was tied closely to nature. You can read more here about how we extracted honey and cleaned the wax for painting medium a couple years ago.
So, back to the day my beehive and sundry items arrived. It was a cold day so the bees were sleepy. We suited up and moved these super heavy boxes (who knew all those teeny bees weighed so much!) one by one from my neighbor’s yard to the back of my field behind the apple and pear trees.
I learned how to smoke the bees (that’s sounds funny) so they stay mellow when I’m working with them and how to prepare a syrup solution for them to eat while waiting for the spring flowers.
The most amazing thing I learned though was how to be in slow-mo. I usually go through my day at the speed of light. I know it’s not very healthy but it’s my tendency. When I put on the bee suit though, I couldn’t move quickly. It’s big, made me clumsy and I couldn’t see or hear well with the muffled hat. The kid gloves are nice but they’re thick and go up to my elbows, making it hard to move fast. I was cocooned.
Combine that cocooning with the buzzing bees and smoke and I was not only forced to slow down but I experienced the zen of beekeeping. Now I know what my dad has been raving about all these years. It reminds me of when I paint and I get into that “space” where time doesn’t exist but creativity continues to flow. I love that space.
I’m now looking forward to hopefully harvesting my own honey and wax to use in my paintings (I use the unbleached wax to tint my colors). I like that I have another activity that is it’s own art form and is tied closely to nature and my art.
Posted on March 20th, 2010
I was interviewed earlier this week by Dr. Lorraine Haataia who is an expert in business improvement and green design for environmental sustainability and waste reduction. She wanted to see my studio and why I’ve adopted a greener, more earth friendly approach to creating my art.
We had a hearty conversation about how being green is a personal choice and while we can’t eliminate what influence we have on our environment, we can certainly make choices about how to minimize our impact. Here is an excerpt from the article:
As being green and sustainable practices are being implemented in business, I would like to see businesses take their commitment a step further by purchasing/leasing art from artists who share the similar philosophies about being green. I would like to see a new breed of art patron emerge, that of the eco-art collector. These are people and organizations that use their dollars and support artists and their art who are considering their materials, studio practices and personal philosophy and in some cases, even their subject matter.
You can read my interview in it’s entirety on Lorraine’s blog: Greening Business Everyday.
Posted on December 18th, 2009
The best place to shop in 2009 was my studio. Seriously. I’m fortunate to have a veritable warehouse of arts and craft supplies. As a creative I am always on the lookout for new, inspiring products. A trip to the art store can be sooo exciting! I’m like a magpie hoarding sparkly things. The problem is that I usually get busy on a new project and those sparkly things get buried back at the studio. Since I forget what I have, I end up buying more inspiring sparkly things on my next outing. Not this year.
This year I decided to minimize the inspirational buying and look at my supplies first. Do I really need that new thing? Do I have it in another color that’s just as suitable? Can I use something I already have in a new, innovative way? If I did have to get something, I took inventory at the studio first and went with a list. Just like going to store with a grocery list and a full stomach, it saves overspending and over buying.
These past couple of years I’ve really been looking at what it means to be a green artist. I realize that making the decision to be green means different things to different people. It just started to bug me how comfortable I’ve become living in a disposable culture. Deciding to shop at my “studio store” got me thinking about turning other things into new tools and art materials. There are also a few nice benefits when you use what you already have in stock or re-purpose: it saves cashola, helps the environment, creates space and simplifies things. Sometimes having a lot makes life quite complicated! Here are a few ways I got creative, using what I had in my “studio store.”
This is one of my encaustic palettes. I used old, stainless steel measuring cups, a broken saucepan and clean tuna cans for different colors. An empty Trader Joe’s cookie tub is perfect for collecting scraped wax. I also save all my wax scrapings (in the cookie tub) to be used in other paintings…it’s one of the many reasons why I like encaustic so much – very little waste.
This is a flower fairy my daughter and I made for holiday gifts this year. It’s made from other leftover projects…beads, pipe cleaners, fake flowers, thread. What made it extra special was shopping in the studio and finding everything we needed. It was fun to work together and we didn’t have to mess with the stores.
What are some ways that you could give something old a new reason for being? How could you “shop” at home or in your studio? Once you get started thinking this way, it’s quite fun and gets the creative juices bubbling with possibilities.
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