Encaustic painting involves using a heated mixture of beeswax, damar resin and colored pigments to apply to a rigid surface, typically wood, to create an image. The word ‘encaustic’ means to ‘burn in’-the layers of encaustic paint need to be fused to the layer beneath them to create a lasting bond. The process was invented by the ancient Greeks around the 4th century bc and many examples have survived. The layers of wax create an interesting depth of color and can be carved away to expose earlier layers, or scored and the marks filled with other color in the same way you might create an etching. The push and pull of layers, scratching and excavating, adding and subtracting marks all feel natural to me as a printmaker and the way I work in layers and marks
