Playing with Fire: a Demonstration of the Ancient Medium of Encaustic with Kathleen Waterloo
Sunday, July 26, 2026
2:00 to 3:30 PM
RSVP – general@womanmade.org
The workshop takes place at Woman Made Gallery, 1332 S. Halsted St. Chicago, IL 60607.
Whether you work in encaustic, are curious about the material, or simply want to see how Kathleen produces her signature layered paintings, this demonstration offers a rare, up-close look at her process and techniques. The event is open to artists at every level of experience.
Derived from the Greek enkaustikos, meaning “to burn in,” encaustic is a versatile medium traditionally composed of beeswax, damar resin, and pigment, fused through the application of heat.
About Kathleen Waterloo
Kathleen Waterloo has worked exclusively in encaustic painting since studying the medium at Oxbow in Saugatuck, Michigan, following her 1996 BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her work is held in numerous public and private collections, including University of Chicago Medicine, Neiman Marcus, and Purdue University Northwest, and has been exhibited in solo and group shows nationally and internationally. An experienced educator and juror, she is a former Woman Made Gallery board member currently serving as juror for WMG’s Pro/Fuse exhibition. Her earlier 18-year career in interior architecture continues to inform her work, where line remains a recurring theme.
Visual Poetics: Image Transfer & Encaustic Layering with Anne Skaug
Saturday, August 8, 2026
2:00 to 4:00 PM
Fee: $65
The workshop takes place at Woman Made Gallery, 1332 S. Halsted St. Chicago, IL 60607.
In this workshop, participants will explore poetics in the visual language of encaustics – its ability to layer and encapsulate imagery, pigment, and texture. Participants will be asked to consider materials beyond the surface level, carefully examining how color, images, and mark-making convey subtle meaning. This workshop will focus on basic encaustic techniques, image transfers onto wax, and studio safety.
About Anne Skaug
Anne Skaug is a Chicago-based artist and educator whose interdisciplinary practice spans fibers, encaustic, and found materials. Born in Rapid City, South Dakota, and of American-Norwegian heritage, she earned her MFA in Fibers from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2023, following a BFA from Black Hills State University. Her work explores themes of lineage, memory, home, and the domestic, and she was named one of “Chicago’s Best Emerging Artists” by InsideHook following her MFA thesis exhibition. Anne currently works as an arts administrator and educator at Arts of Life, a Chicago nonprofit supporting artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and her design work has been recognized as a finalist in the 2025 Communication Arts Typography competition.
Survival Guide for Artists PDF
$15.00
This project is a continuation of Woman Made Gallery’s Exhibiting Professionalism Manual, which was originally written by Janet Bloch and Beate Minkovski and used in WMG’s workshops form 1995 to 2012. The current version has been updated by WMG team member, Veronica Clements, and edited by Melanie Deal. This guide was written to assist artists with their professional development. The advice comes from a vast network of personal and professional experience in creating, exhibiting, curating, and jurying artwork.
Note: Orders will be emailed to you and will include a link and a PDF attachment of the manual.
Woman Made Gallery is supported in part by grants from The Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events; The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation; The Illinois Arts Council Agency; the Arts Midwest GIG Fund, a program of Arts Midwest that is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, with additional contributions from the Illinois Arts Council Agency; the Puffin Foundation; a major anonymous donor; and the generosity of its members and contributors.