Alchemy

Karen Frey

I have never been able to figure out quite what occurs between the conception and the completion of a painting. I simply describe it as magic. I’ve always wanted to be an artist and have followed my path with no regrets.

Most of my career was spent painting in watercolor, long before I ever saw an encaustic painting. While I believed for all that time watercolor was my medium of choice, I now think those years spent were my tutorial for painting in encaustic.

Painting in watercolor was definitely the platform of my process. With it I learned how to express my knowledge of seeing/looking/drawing, developing color, and orchestrating compositional elements in my own way. All the skills accrued have been transferred to my approach when painting with wax. Both share transparency and fluidity, characteristics I understand and comfortably maneuver, even though the technicality used for each medium is specific.

Being a technique-oriented painter, when I become intrigued with a medium, I must explore its nature. How does it behave? How can I nudge it along to achieve a result that satisfies me, yet doesn’t interfere with its essence?

Rainy Dusk in SF II Encaustic on birch panel 24 x 18 in

Last Dinner - Rome Encaustic on birch panel 24 x 24 in

Respecting the intrinsic qualities of a medium is of great importance to me. I want to be the alchemist, directing from my core the abundant potential of my materials. I find it curious that my encaustic work puzzles some viewers. I’ve been asked how I paint realistically in encaustic and whether I incorporate photos into my paintings. I do use photos for studio paintings as a reference only and often shoot specifically for this purpose.

As a practicing artist, I also make time to work from life as well: filling sketchbooks, working with models, and painting en plein air. My studio work allows me to integrate all the elements that I determine to be crucial into my painting in a more thoughtful and deliberate way, rather than just my gut reaction approach to working from life.

I begin a painting by drawing with oil pastel onto a white gessoed birch panel; I suspect this is a connection to working on watercolor paper.

I then apply a thin layer of clear wax, fuse, and repeat. And so the painting begins….

My paintings take multiple layers of diluted color to complete, another link to watercolor.

I am an admitted control freak when working, although I’m not really drawn to hyper-realistic paintings. My goal is to achieve a more painterly result.

Sometimes I think that my devotion to painting what I see hinders the outcome, which is why working in encaustic has been so liberating.

Three Sisters Encaustic on birch panel 24 x 24 in

I allow myself the luxury of fussing over the application of pigment to my hearts content. But when I fuse, I must accept the results, which are often extraordinarily diferent from what I have painted. The melting of wax transforms the painting in unusual ways. I find it incredibly gratifying to torch all that hard work, knowing full well that the results may involve the good, the bad, and the ugly.

First Cup Encaustic on birch panel 9 x 12 in Also featured on the back cover

Rainy Dusk in SF I Encaustic on birch panel 24 x 24 in

I feel obligated to say that fusing is an art of its own and can be finessed to honor the nature of both wax and fire, as well as my own sensibilities. I believe that fusing is equally, if not more important, than painting with the wax. I find it quite physical, even dance like. I place my painting on a Lazy Susan type of platform. While slowly caressing it in a circular motion with my torch set on a low flame, I am also rotating the painting with my other hand. It is a task that cannot be rushed. If the wax is melted with excessive heat, it will completely liquefy, not my result of choice.

What takes place when I’m working is nearly impossible for me to describe. I disappear when I paint. I don't have conscious thought. I'm unaware of my body floating in a time warp. I exist and my painting exists; that’s it. All else is an intrusion. I evaluate my work only when I’m not actively painting. Most often when I find something distracting, mysteriously, answers come to me.

There are many times when I wonder how I know what to do, or how to do it. It lies within me, unspoken. It’s transformation, magic, alchemy.

Rain in London I Encaustic on birch panel 24 x 24 in

Rudy and Domino - In a Doorway Encaustic on birch panel 30 x 30 in

About the Author

San Francisco Bay Area native Karen Frey paints in a representational manner, in both encaustic and watercolor. Her work is subtly narrative and technically adept, distinguishing it among realistic painting. Her paintings hold a finesse and polish that reflect her 50 years of experience and practice as an artist. Frey has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the California College of the Arts. She lives and paints in Oakland, CA.

Her work is inspired by all the things in life that speak to her in a visual sense, whether they be environmental or those around her who influence.

She believes that artists gravitate towards certain media in a way that reveals their logical path of problem solving. She spent many years practicing how to realize an image using wet-into-wet watercolor techniques, simply because it spoke and made sense to her. For the past 13 years, she has focused on expressing imagery with encaustic, a significantly more challenging medium. It shares many similarities relative to Frey’s methodology.

You can view Karen’s work at karenfrey.com