Grosse Pointe Art Center hosts national encaustic show, ‘Embedded Light’ By K. Michelle Moran GROSSE POINTE CITY — It’s an art form that dates back to fifth century B.C. Greece, but encaustic painting remains as fresh a medium today as anything done digitally. That was evident during the opening reception at the Grosse Pointe Art Center Oct. 9 for “Embedded Light,” the first national encaustic exhibit in Michigan. The show — which runs through Nov. 7 — was spearheaded by GPAC Board President Birgit Huttemann-Holz, whose enthusiasm for the art began the very first time she tried it. “It took me nine months to organize (the show). It was like a healthy pregnancy,” Huttemann-Holz said with a laugh. “I think the show is fabulous and (it displays) all of the ways you can manipulate with hot beeswax. I’m very pleased that we have 24 artists from across the country.” In encaustic painting, molten beeswax-based paint is applied to a surface and reheated “to fuse the paint into a uniform, enamel-like finish,” Huttemann-Holz said. The word itself comes from Greek and “means ‘to burn in,’ which refers to the process of fusing the paint,” she explained. Encaustic began to regain popularity thanks to its use in the 20th century by notable artists like Jasper Johns and Diego Rivera. Margarete Koenen Nagarkar of Detroit has been working in encaustic for about three years. She especially appreciates the textural quality of the medium. Her works in the show feature delicate 3-D flowers created from wax, as well as embellishments such as seed pearls and lace. “I saw a friend work with (encaustic) and I loved it,” she said. “It seemed like magic to me.” Koenen Nagarkar admits it’s a difficult medium to manipulate, but she likes it because she can do things in encaustic that wouldn’t be possible with paint. “Embedded Light” is a great showcase for the medium because it “represents all of the different ways wax is being used,” she said. “We are very pleased with the show, with the quality of the work,” said new GPAC Director Amy Debrunner. Visitors were as delighted with the show as organizers. Michelle Beaupré of Grosse Pointe Park called the exhibit “fantastic.” “It’s all so different, too,” she said of the works. Betty Ruud of Grosse Pointe Park, a former GPAC board member who remains active, said the show “is fantastic.” She was also excited about the presence of artists from outside Michigan. Former GPAC Board President Jon Bell believes the art center has finally put itself on the map. He, too, was impressed with what he saw. “There’s an interesting notion that we have unique pieces of art from one of the most ancient techniques,” Bell said. “(Encaustic painting has) a softness of palette, and I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a scent as well.” Because they use beeswax, many encaustic paintings smell faintly of honey close up. The show’s juror, Chris McCauley, is an internationally regarded encaustic expert who has worked in the medium since 1992. McCauley studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and got her master’s degree in fine art from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills. One particular point of pride was that several of the award winners — including the first-place recipient — were from Michigan. The top winner was M.J. Seltzer of Commerce Township, who earned first place for “Lucky Draw,” an unconventional portrait of her daughter that’s divided into a series of separate but related squares, some of which contain embedded items like matchsticks and an onion bag. “Wax gives you such flexibility,” Seltzer said. “It can be sculptural. It can be traditional. It’s a fun medium.” Leslie Sobel of Milan received third place for her work, which applies encaustic paint to images from space by NASA that she prints on large-format, exotic papers, many of which have textures the artist leaves visible in spots. “It’s a mix of very ancient media and very modern media,” Sobel acknowledged. Sobel’s work in the show focuses on areas strongly impacted by global warming, such as glaciers receding in Greenland. “The world’s a really beautiful place and we need to protect it and appreciate how beautiful it is,” she said. Alix Christian of Detroit took home an honorable mention for “Nine Ways Out,” one of three works she has in the show. Her winning piece is a metaphor for creating one’s own opportunities. That could easily be a metaphor for “Embedded Light” itself, which showcases the diverse creative talent produced by artists from as far away as California and Connecticut, and as close as the next town. The GPAC is located at 16900 Kercheval in the Village. Regular hours are noon-6 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday-Saturday. Admission is free. For more information, call (313) 821-1848, visit www.grossepointeartcenter.org or send e-mail to gpaa@grossepointeartcenter.org. You can reach Arts & Entertainment Editor K. Michelle Moran at kmoran@candgnews.com or at (586) 498-1047. |
