Encaustic portraits date back 2000 years to the Fayum Egyptian portrait artist. These portraits were painted during a persons lifetime, hung in thier homes, then attached to his or her casket after death.
The encaustic portraits of Thom Priemon are from 2017-2018 dating just before and during his 70th year. The artist has worked in encaustics for nearly 40 years dating back to the late 1970's. He works on a heated substructure of wood and at times Greenbord coated in clay. he uses Enkaustik sticks appled to the surface then brushed in a dry brush procedure or the encaustic is lifted off the heated Enkaustik stick onto a brush and then applied to the heated surface. The Enkauastik stick is Pigment, resin (damar resin ) and wax. The heating source is a heat gun used at a medium heat so that the numerous layers of pigmented strokes may be applyed in overlapping layers. Waiting between layering of color is essential for applying a multitude of color layers onto each other. the pigmented wax layers are thin so the cooling time is quick. In between layering, the surface gets a light sanding to let underneath color layers peek through, This layering of wax. pigment and resin may go on for several days up to several weeks depending on the coloring of the image, after all is complete a hardening coat of resin goes on the heated surface and a final heavy fusion of heat applied thus finishing the painting.
The encaustic portraits of Thom Priemon are from 2017-2018 dating just before and during his 70th year. The artist has worked in encaustics for nearly 40 years dating back to the late 1970's. He works on a heated substructure of wood and at times Greenbord coated in clay. he uses Enkaustik sticks appled to the surface then brushed in a dry brush procedure or the encaustic is lifted off the heated Enkaustik stick onto a brush and then applied to the heated surface. The Enkauastik stick is Pigment, resin (damar resin ) and wax. The heating source is a heat gun used at a medium heat so that the numerous layers of pigmented strokes may be applyed in overlapping layers. Waiting between layering of color is essential for applying a multitude of color layers onto each other. the pigmented wax layers are thin so the cooling time is quick. In between layering, the surface gets a light sanding to let underneath color layers peek through, This layering of wax. pigment and resin may go on for several days up to several weeks depending on the coloring of the image, after all is complete a hardening coat of resin goes on the heated surface and a final heavy fusion of heat applied thus finishing the painting.
