Creating Imaginary Jellyfish
As an artist with a background in printmaking , I have a love for both process and detail . While developing my process , I discovered the similarities between etching and encaustic : the most obvious being the use of wax on etching a plate , covering the plate with wax before it is is dropped into the acid bath where tiny lines are eaten into the zinc . The process has changed so little that I still use some of the etching tools I used in graduate school in the 1970s .
I stumbled onto encaustics when two of my colleagues at Butte College took a workshop on this medium and brought back a small example of what they did in the class . I was both intrigued and impressed with what I saw , so I took the same workshop a month later . Back in my studio , armed with both JoAnne Mattera ’ s “ The Art of Encaustic Painting ” and a used pancake griddle from the thrift shop , I forged my way through a few months of trial and error .
My first series was very well received : I sold all forty works . Now that I felt confident , I knew that encaustic would be my chosen medium for some time to come . That was eighteen years ago .
Paula Busch “ POD BASKET ,” encaustic , oil stick , 45 x 15 inches , 2020
Image Details , title page : Paula Busch “ ENDANGERED SPECIES VI ,” encaustic , alcohol ink on MDF , 24 x 16 inches , 2021