This painting is created using an ancient and captivating technique known as encaustic. My process begins with a blend of beeswax, powdered pigment, and damar resin, each element playing a vital role in both the structure and luminosity of the final piece. These materials are carefully combined and heated until they reach a molten state, forming the medium I use to build the painting.

Once the wax is liquefied, I work quickly, applying the hot medium with a brush onto a wood cradled panel. The surface immediately begins to respond, as the wax cools and solidifies within moments. This urgency is central to the process—it demands instinctive movement and decisive mark-making, allowing the composition to unfold in a very direct and physical way.

To further shape the painting, I use a blow torch to reheat and manipulate the wax after it has been applied. This step allows the colors to shift, blend, and move across the surface in a way that feels both controlled and organic. In this coastal seascape, that movement echoes the rhythm of water and atmosphere, reinforcing the subject through the process itself.

Because the wax cools so quickly, each mark exists in a brief window of time. The forms and shapes emerge almost instantly, giving the work a sense of immediacy and energy. These moments are preserved as layers, each one contributing to the evolving image while retaining traces of the gestures that created them.

Although the painting is built through multiple layers, they are ultimately fused together into a single, unified surface. One of the most compelling aspects of encaustic is its translucency—the way light passes through the layers, revealing depth beneath the surface. This interplay of opacity and transparency creates a quiet luminosity, inviting the viewer to look both at and through the painting.