ARTIST STATEMENT
My work is a fusion of digital imagery and sketches combined with the ancient art of encaustic wax. I carefully chose photos or sketches and burnish them onto warm, fragrant wax. Then I heat to fuse the photos firmly into the wax. Next I rough up the wax and add found objects if desired. Finally I etch for more texture and rub on smooth, rich oil color. That’s my passion, photo encaustic art.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
A Chicago based, veteran professional photographer and retired professor of photography at CSU/Sacramento, Susan Leith expanded her photographic and artistic skills into the realm of Photo Encaustic art – a combination of photography, etching and painting, captured in hot wax. Susan’s subject matter varies greatly from portraits to rainy traffic jams to the lifecycle of sunflowers.
Susan is honored to have her work displayed in the permanent collection at the Encaustic Art Institute in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and recently won an honorable mention in their juried competition, Joy.
Mastering the medium of Encaustic art is challenging and after rising to meet those challenges, Susan wrote a book and created YouTube videos not only to explain the technique but also to encourage a broader understanding and interest in the art form.
For Susan, the joy of the encaustic process is the tactile immersion that combines her love of photography and the creation of new and textured forms in wax that can be shared and bring joy to others.
© Susan Leith