By 2009 , I had started using encaustic medium as a collage adhesive and a way to build up a textural surface in encaustic painting . Following my earlier practice , I decided to try pressing dry pigment through the silkscreens over smooth , fused surfaces of encaustic medium . It turned out that , when the screen was removed and the surface was heated with a heat gun , the powder would simply drop down and be absorbed into the wax .
This opened up a range of possibilities in combining powdered pigments with encaustic . I began layering the patterns over one another to create the illusion of luminous depth – at times it looked like you were looking through water and at other times like looking through smoke .
I chose monochrome or analogous colors and layered them from light to dark , fusing each layer . ( All the while using latex gloves to prevent absorption of the powdered pigment into my skin , and a protective face mask , with a respirator , to protect myself from breathing in the dust from the potentially hazardous pigments .) After fusing each layer I washed the surface of the work and removed any leftover pigment completely . Then I painted on another layer of encaustic medium . After scraping the next layer of medium until it was smooth , I pressed another layer of powdered pigment through the silkscreen and fuse it . Then I washed it and repeated the process until I was satisfied with the result .