Heated Exchange features the seductive surface, luminous color, and ethereal image layering unique to the encaustic medium. Each artist approaches the process from a distinct perspective that may incorporate scraping, burning, burnishing, incising, dipping, dyeing, or pouring, as well as painting, printmaking, drawing, collage, sculpture, or installation. While diverse in approach, numerous conceptual links connect our interest in this malleable material. Buried images, fragmented hybrids, or hidden codes of natural and industrial order, all translate into works infused with a physically poetic beauty. The exhibition resonates with sensual materiality. The aromatic scent of honeyed beeswax is an intoxicating perfume. Tactile surfaces reveal unique traces of the hand, while gleaming color fused with intricate markings orchestrate striking visual chords.

From 2006-2009, I curated and traveled the exhibition The Divas and Iron Chefs of Encaustic. I was delighted when The Upstairs Artspace in Tryon, NC (September 21 – November 17, 2012) asked me to revisit the concept for a new showing. Heated Exchange resulted when I added three artists to the original roster and expanded the scope to integrate more sculptural works. Once an obsolete technique, encaustic (hot wax) is now recognized both for its exquisite beauty and incredible versatility. The artists Kim Bernard, Kristy Deetz, Peter Dykhuis, Lorraine Glessner, Cheryl Goldsleger, Reni Gower, Heather Harvey, Jeffrey Hirst, Tim McDowell, Laura Moriarty, and Jane Allen Nodine are among those who helped turn this legendary paint of the Fayum mummy portraits into a mainstream contemporary medium.

Itinerary
2012 - The Upstairs Artspace, Tryon, NC
2013 - Elizabeth Stone Harper Gallery, Clinton, SC
2013 - Slocumb Galleries, ESTU, Johnson City, TN
2014 - Sarasota Art Center, Sarasota, FL
2016 - J Stark Wayne Galleries, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
2016 - Capital One, Plano, TX
2016 - California Center for the Arts, Escondido, CA
2017 - California State University-Dominguez Hills, Carson, CA
2017 - Visual Arts Center, Portsmouth, VA
2017 - Gumenick Gallery, Cultural Arts Center, Glen Allen, VA
2018 - Capital One, Richmond, VA

Catalog Link: http://www.blurb.com/b/3506507-heated-exchange