Could you talk about your style and process ? I strive for my work to be meditative . It is mostly monochromatic and highly textural . I build up the initial layers using thick paint , lots of colors , recognizable imagery , and texture . I often incorporate sand , dirt , and ash into the wax and on the surface . As the painting develops , I gradually quiet the surface , exploiting the translucence of the oil and wax mixture letting elements of the painting ’ s history show through . Washes of solvent and dry pigments along the way help add depth and richness . This is what I do . Some artists paint realistic portraits . Others create atmospheric pieces building up very thin layers . There are many ways to work it .
What surfaces and supports can be used with CWM ? Like encaustic , cold wax does best on rigid , porous substrates like primed wood panels . However , unlike encaustic , traditional acrylic gesso is an adequate ground . When mounted to rigid panels , canvas , paper alternatives like Multimedia Artboard and Terraskin , and paper created for oil painting work well . Artists who work with thin layers successfully paint on stretched canvas . Thicker layers tend to crack , and the canvas can sag under the weight of the medium .
What kinds of paints and pigments are used with CWM ? All types of oil paints work well , including traditional oils , water-solubles , and alkyds . The addition of cold wax allows artists to ignore the “ fat over lean ” rules and paint more freely . Oil painting mediums can be added to alter the properties of the mixture . Artists can also combine virtually any type of dry pigment with cold wax and work as they would with oils . I will mention that while water soluble oils can be safely used with CWM , they afford no benefit over traditional oils . CWM contains solvent , and , generally speaking , the purpose of water-solubles is to avoid solvents .