“Connie’s art moves me in unexpected ways.”
— J. Baerg
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What is Encaustic?
Encaustic painting dates to the 5th century B.C. and involves fusing together numerous layers of molten beeswax, tree resin and pigments. Each layer of encaustic medium is applied and then fused to the previous layer using a blowtorch. The surface is then scraped or scratched or rubbed with oil paints and other mediums to create a myriad of effects. Unlike other paint mediums, encaustic has this sculptural component to it.
Connie Stover, Encaustic Explorer
When I work with encaustics, I paint with beeswax, a torch, razors, my fingers, and often – as I touch flame to wax – pure adrenaline.
There’s always an interesting call and response dynamic between what the fire and wax chooses to do and what was my original intention for a piece. So, rarely do I approach a work with a preconceived endpoint in mind. For me, art-making is a creative practice of exploration – of finding the yet-hidden pieces of a story I’m about to tell, and my private vocabulary of marks, scratches, and gouges give voice to that story.
Each finished piece of art as a short story: small in size, but telling a complete narrative. I hope that when you view my work that you’ll find a connection to them and create stories of your own.
