Waxed in Time: 4 Takes on Encaustics

Encaustic was invented by the ancient Greeks who called it enkaustikos that referred to fixing or "burning-in" color and wax onto a surface. Molten beeswax, resin and pigment are mixed together to create encaustic colors that are worked while hot and fluid then applied to any permanent support. The artist controls the timing of the wax's congealing so that she can either keep heating it and working or allow each layer to congeal in order to carve into its depths as does Renee Magnanti. There are no known extant Greek Encaustics but we know of its use from Roman writings and relics such as 2nd-4th Century mummy cases from Fayoum, Egypt, Encaustic fell into disuse because its process was found to be cumbersome and although many attempts were made to revive its use in the 17th and 18th Centuries, success only ensued during the first quarter of the 20th Century, This coincided with the  availability of electric heating appliances that made the process easier to manage than in ancient times when braziers or drums full of charcoals were used. Encaustic is unique in its ability to render rich impastos of color.

--Thalia Vrochopoulos

Joan Giordano's statements are grand gestures into the human psyche's layered symbolism. Giordano folds international newspapers into her molten wax to produce forms that interplay with each other as well as trans-globally. Giordano's work is part of a continuing series of sculptures that relate to the energies of nature and a deeply felt affinity for the delicate balance between the fragility of the human condition and the power of humanity. Giordano fuses disparate elements such as metal, straw, paper, wire, wood, and other materials that work together in dialogue. In combining these various objects both man-made and natural, she references states of transformation between nature and urban life.

Joan Giordano has enjoyed nearly twenty solo shows and taken part in countless group exhibitions worldwide. Her work was included in the first major exhibition of encaustic art "Waxing Poetic; Encaustic Art In America" at the Montclair Museum.
Her sculptures and installations are an improbable juxtaposition of materials that are woven, twisted, burnt and waxed. In her current work they become a tapestry of messages and myths.

»Joan's Resume

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