Annie McArdle

Annie holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Art with an emphasis in Graphic Design from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She currently spends as much time as possible creating encaustic, resin and mixed media paintings in her studio. Annie has established a home-based design business over the past twelve years.

Encaustic medium is a combination of molten beeswax and damar resin, which is crystallized tree sap. By adding pigments, oil paints, and many other mixed media, I add color to the clear medium and different surfaces emerge. This painting method is different from other mediums in that I work hot and cold, versus wet and dry. I have a very brief moment to place the wax on the painting before it solidifies, only to heat it again to fuse it to the layer beneath. The many layers allow a three dimensional depth which allows light to bounce off and through the surface, creating stunning luminosity. The transparency of colors and the mixed media I use determines whether light is obstructed or allowed to pass through. Also, building up the wax and scraping it away to reveal different colored layers underneath is something that is unique to this medium.

Layer upon layer, I use a blowtorch to fuse the top layer to the layers beneath. The creation of thin layers with fusing between each ensures cohesion. Sometimes I put 50+ layers down on a surface, and the result is a completed painting that is sometimes as thick as ¼” – ½”.