Portfolio
Ellen Koment
Summer 22
Upon graduating from Art
School, I headed to the west
coast for graduate school in
painting at UC Berkeley. What a
bright and beautiful new world!
Within a few years I married,
moved to the country, and unfortunately,
my husband died. I
began a new life. My husband
passed away after a long illness.
Seeking a new adventure, I spent
a year traveling in Europe, Egypt
and Israel. In the early 1980s I
came to Taos, New Mexico as
a resident at Wurlitzer Foundation.
Although I quickly fell in
love with New Mexico, it took me
a dozen years to actually move
here. Now I’ve been in Santa Fe
for almost two decades, and it
has been kind to me as an artist:
from having galleries in which to
exhibit my work, to interacting
with a vibrant artist community.
I’ve enjoyed teaching encaustic
workshops (and am doubly
pleased that they have been so
popular), as well as teaching at
UNM and SFCC.
The fluidity and speed of
encaustic have allowed me to
experiment in ways that might
otherwise have been more
difficult. Now, the process often
seems simpler and clearer than
what I experienced as a young
artist. I become more intentional
in my process as the work
revolves more and more around
simplicity and beauty. This is
where encaustic has again
been a great gift. I am increasingly
drawn to creating brilliant,
luminous layers, enveloping in
light the strata that reveal the
painting’s history and my own
past.
As I continue in the realm of luminosity
on paper and panels, my
desire is to maintain the freshness
and immediacy of a paper piece,
even in a painting that I may work
on for six months. With all that I
have learned on my journey
as an artist, I am confidently
traveling the path of bringing my
ideas to reality.
Lirica, 48”x40”, 2008, encaustic on panel.
Ellen Koment, for additional
information please visit:
http://www.ellenkoment.com
www.EAINM.com
Upside Down #2, 24” x 18”, 2011,
encaustic on panel, collection of
Robert Pettit.