Lots of Waxy Goodness Happening in My Studio

I have been under the radar lately,  hunkered down in my studio preparing for a very busy month of June: my first exhibition at Lanoue Fine Art in Boston, Lights, Camera…Click: Photography in Contemporary Art, with Eric Zener and Julie Stratton–two exhibitions in Provincetown, MA, concurrent with the 6th International Encaustic Conference– Merge: Contemporary Print Invitational (see below) and presenters of the conference at the Schoolhouse Gallery .  At the conference I will be presenting Wax Collage: Beyond Technique..yes, still tweaking that, hotel fair, still prepping that.. an exhibition at Mark Gallery Englewood, NJ, Face to Face…and I have two paintings in The Kips Bay Decorators Show House in NYC.       ..more images to come.

First Portrait of 2012

Sylvie, encaustic and mixed media, 40x40" ©Marybeth Rothman

Sylvie has emerged first in this new year from a group of paintings that I was working on at the end of 2011. Disclaimer: photographed under studio lighting with a point and shoot, the color is a bit off.  I love being in my studio in the winter, got to get back to work.

Best Wishes for Happy and Healthy New Year

Now and then it’s good to pause in our pursuit of happiness  and just be happy.  Guillaume Apollinaire

The Clarksburg Decision, encaustic and mixed media, 40×40″ © Marybeth Rothman 2011

Encaustic and Mixed Media Painting Studio Newsletter

I just finished my first quarterly Studio Newsletter and would like to send it to you. I just found out that Constant Contact will cancel my account if I enter your email address and send the newsletter to you without your permission. I’m sending it out tonight and will send the next one  in April.   Click here to subscribe to my quarterly Studio Newsletter.

Wax Collage: Beyond Technique– A Call to Artists

I am giving a talk, Wax Collage: Beyond Technique at the 6^th International Encaustic Conference on June 1, 2012 in Provincetown, MA.  This conference draws from an international roster of exhibiting artists who are fully engaged with encaustic. I will be presenting the work of 15-20 contemporary painters, bookmakers, printmakers and photographers whose Wax Collage transcends both encaustic and collage to form a singular expression. This is not a “How To” revealing the secret techniques of a sub-group of “encaustic artists”, but an examination of the expression of Wax Collage. This exposition will emphasize the message rather than the medium.

To be considered for inclusion in Wax Collage: Beyond Technique, please follow the submission requirements exactly:                                                                                >Deadline: Friday, December 16, 2012                                                                          >Send 5 jpgs., 72 dpi                                                                                                        >Label your images:  01.Your Name-title.jpg                                                                          >Image list:  1. Title, medium, size H x W x D”                                                                       >Short bio                                                                                                                            >Contact info: name, email and website                                                                            >Please send to: marybethrothman.studio@gmail.com

I look forward to seeing your work.

Encaustic Collage — A Call To Artists

I am giving a talk, Wax Collage: Beyond Technique at the 6^th International Encaustic Conference on June 1, 2012 in Provincetown, MA.  This conference draws from an international roster of exhibiting artists who are fully engaged with encaustic. I will be presenting the work of 15-20 contemporary painters, bookmakers, printmakers and photographers whose Wax Collage transcends both encaustic and collage to form a singular expression. This is not a “How To” revealing the secret techniques of a sub-group of “encaustic artists”, but an examination of the expression of Wax Collage. This exposition will emphasize the message rather than the medium.

To be considered for inclusion in Wax Collage: Beyond Technique, please follow the submission requirements exactly:                                                                                >Deadline: Friday, December 16, 2012                                                                          >Send 5 jpgs., 72 dpi                                                                                                        >Label your images:  01.Your Name-title.jpg                                                                          >Image list:  1. Title, medium, size H x W x D”                                                                       >Short bio                                                                                                                            >Contact info: name, email and website                                                                            >Please send to: marybethrothman.studio@gmail.com

I look forward to seeing your work.

Contemporary Paper and Encaustic: International Trends

Please consider making a contribution to support Contemporary Paper and Encaustic: International Trends , a groundbreaking E- Publication project created by Pollock-Krasner Grant receipient, Catharine Nash.

Portrait of My Son Jack and His Autism

"Portrait of My Son Jack and His Autism", encaustic and mixed media, 40"x40" ©Marybeth Rothman

Typically my encaustic mixed media portraits, include vintage photography. Recently I decided to branch out and use my own photography. Posted here is a portrait of one of my sons.

After many months of following my son Jack with a camera, I realized this would not only be portrait of him, but also his autism. I recorded the severity of this disorder that has defined his place in the world, excluded him from society, and denied him the beauty and subtleties of life.  Portrait of My Son Jack and His Autism is a story told from a distant, isolated and awkward place. Armed with a only a few utterances, Jack wanders through the world overwhelmed by words and sounds that he cannot understand and people he will never know.  Jack responds to the world viscerally, indifferent and at times with small sparks of recognition.   The photograph that I chose for this painting portrays my son as he blocks out the sound in an ordinary situation, which for him is a swirling storm that he cannot navigate.

My encaustic and mixed media approach to portraits is cumulative, adding many subtle layers of paint, paper, and photographs to form an amalgam of biographical texture. In response to this intensive examination in Portrait of My Son Jack and His Autism, I worked more intuitively. I observed that I had unconsciously added more layers than usual of biographical annotation, more vigorous incising, scraping and a rougher surface. I sculpted and enlarged the image to allow for more intimacy between the viewer and the work. The interplay of the opacity and translucency of the encaustic paint became an essential element in this narrative portrait. The many-layered process created a visual depth that uniquely describes the complex life of this young man.

Exhibiting at Clark University

Above left: Camile 7:17 pm, encaustic and mixed media.

Exhibiting in New Views of Encaustic Art

The Clarksburg Decision, encaustic and mixed media, 40"x40". ©2011 Marybeth Rothman

I am exhibiting in New Views of Encaustic Art at the Carroll House Gallery, Keene State College, Keene, New Hampshire, September 5- October 2, 2011.  This exhibition was curated by Peter Roos, and includes work by Laura Moriarty, Kevin Frank, Francisco Benitez and Leah MacDonald.