Mary Kate McCormick/The Mirror
“The Last Picture Show” is about bringing all of the gallery’s artists together for their last two months in their 11 Unquowa Road location. In this show, the majority of the 30 or so artists at Art/Place will be displaying their newest works.
Usually, the gallery only hosts two artists’ work at a time, but because of their relocation at the end of October, it is important to bring everyone together for one last show.
Amid the 30 or so pieces in “The Last Picture Show” is an encaustic on wood painting by Fairfield’s very own professor of interior design Patrick Kennedy. The work is entitled “Cropped Script III” and was painted using a technique that traces back to the times of the Egyptian Pharaohs.
In a conversation with Kennedy at the “The Last Picture Show’s” opening this past Sunday, this Fairfield university lecturer and professional artist explained his unique encaustic style of painting.
Although many readers might not know what the word encaustic means, it is likely that you have seen this style of painting in a museum or a textbook. Most famously, encaustic paintings were used to make the images on the faces of Egyptian mummies and because of the high melting point of the wax, many of these paintings have survived to present day.
Encaustic painting today is very similar to the techniques used to create the mummy images hundreds of years ago. It is a method that involved the application of melted, pigmented wax onto a canvas, in Kennedy’s case, a piece of wood. The creation of the piece is a multi-step process that Kennedy referred to as “the alchemy of encaustic.” He explained that although pre-mixed encaustic paints are available, he prefers to mix his own wax colors. Unlike artists that work in oil paints or watercolor, encaustic artists have to know the science of wax mixing.
To create a particular color, Kennedy “heats the wax, which is mostly beeswax to its melting point at about 200 degrees Fahrenheit.” Following this, Kennedy adds pigments for oil paints to create the exact color that he needs for a piece. It is this almost scientific process of heating, mixing and creating the perfect color that makes Kennedy love encaustic, stating that the “creation of every part of the piece, including the wax,” is what makes this technique of painting so special to him.
Following the “alchemy” of creating the wax, Kennedy applies the colors of the piece in layers, giving the painting a texture unlike an oil painting. After each layer, the wax must be re-heated and hardened before the next layer and color are applied. Thus, the painting is both an artistic expression and detailed process that only someone knowledgeable in encaustic paintings would be able to complete.
When the layers are finished and the piece is complete, Kennedy smoothes the surface of the piece with the warmth of his hands, a method of finishing that the Ancient Egyptians would have also used.
Kennedy’s piece “Cropped Script III” which hangs in the Fairfield gallery shows the beauty of ancient encaustic. He describes the piece as “influenced by the caligrapy in Asian art” and “an exhibition of his encaustic alchemy.” Kennedy remarked that the piece was a long process to make and involves more than six layers of pigmented wax.
Kennedy is also featured in galleries throughout Connecticut and is a new member of the Art/Place family.
Art/Place Gallery and other venues for local art are ways for professionals in the community to tell their story in a different way than most of us expect. Local art allows for a connection between the community that is different than a news story or a public lecture.
Additionally, Art/Place Gallery serves as a meeting place for both the young and old members of the Fairfield community to bond over art, which is timeless and ageless.
So come out and support Art/Place Gallery in their last few months before moving! Best of all, the price to stroll through the gallery is free, just right for college students, and the Stagbus will drop you off right across the street!
Try something new and take a break from your busy schedules. Become part of the community that we live in. Art/Place Gallery is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. For more information go to http://artplace.org or just drop in.
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