Keep the Light On Painting

“My work is all about process: the action of slowly adding thin layers of melted wax and pigment to a wood surface. I love the physicality of the process and my paintings are not as much “painted” as they are built. Built by the the process of laying down of wax, heating with fire, scraping away and repeating. Slowly, the paintings emerge, leaving behind a history of colors and marks made a long the way” -Christy Branson, Artist I often say that I must have been born with a crayon in my hand. Growing up in a low income family that moved a lot, I was often left to myself. Luckily, even at an early age I had an amazing capacity for creativity that has always been my constant source of comfort. Working my way through college I could never find anything else that felt more right to me than fine arts. I studied and explored all of the different mediums: pottery, sculpting, oils, watercolor and so on. I liked them all. It wasn’t until years later that I learned what encaustics were, that I fell in love with a medium. I knew I had to paint in wax. In 2013, quite by accident, I witnessed and artist melting chunks of wax with a strange tree resin on YouTube, of all places. I was immediately transfixed and knew that this is what I had to do. Ferociously learning everything that I could about this ancient art form, very naturally made everything in my creative life fall into place. Setting up an encaustic studio quickly followed. For me, the medium lends itself to what I have to say in a way that no other art form is able to do. I am heavily influenced by my environment and therefore landscapes tend to emerge frequently in my work. Being able to apply thin layers of wax, mark making and pigment allows for me to create an atmospheric quality to my paintings that draw the viewer into the luscious surface of the wax, only to discover a peaceful world that lies beneath. Today, I continue expanding the process and ‘making it my own’ by incorporating original techniques and my own ideas. My craft has never felt more right and I’m blessed to have found my artistic authenticity through wax.