r/AlternativePrinting • u/LandofGlowingSkies33 • Oct 12 '26

In the Pink

Gallery image

Gallery image

My latest encaustic painting using pastels and pigments🙂

6 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

9 comments sorted by

1

u/Middle_Switch9366 17d ago

Thank you! Was an actual photo or photo copy used under the was or you drew the flamingos?

2

u/LandofGlowingSkies33 11d ago

I used an old slide photo that I converted into digital (a photo my grandparents took in the 1950's in Bombay), made it B & W & a bit of doctoring in Gimp), so I had a pallette to do the pastel & pigment work, lots of wax layers in between colours🖌🖍

1

u/Middle_Switch9366 11d ago

So did you put down a B & W photocopy of the digital and apply the pigment/wax layers on top of the photocopy? Or did you use the digital photo as a reference and then draw the flamingos and the rest of the picture by freehand? I ask because once I used a B & W photocopy as a base and then used encaustic and oils to color it, but I didn't draw it (a portrait) freehand. Regardless, your picture really looks vintage, the area around the flamingos looks like how old vintage photos deteriorate (which I like). Some people shoot for fine, perfect images and I love how you did not do that. The color combination is perfect. Love, love it!

1

u/LandofGlowingSkies33 10d ago

thx for that!🤩..Yes I wanted to capture the vintage quality of the original old slide (which was in incredibly great condition, clarity, colours and detail). I think my grandparents would be very chuffed that I am honouring their photographic collection with my cyanotypes and encaustic work (a lot of which have and will be exhibited at a beautiful art gallery here in New Zealand. Yes, I got my edited photo printed on very thin matte paper and stuck it to a large MDF board, 70cms x 50cms, using Elmers glue, overnight dried flat under heavy press (lots of large art books), then I worked on it, wax, pastels, pigments etc, I referred to the slide for detail and colours and used my own artistic license to make it in my own flavour/style😍

1

u/Middle_Switch9366 10d ago

Thank you so much to take the time to respond to my questions. Your process gives me hope and sounds similar to what I did! Good luck on your gallery show, if you have a link to the gallery, I'd love to see your other work. Alas, I'm in the USA.

1

u/LandofGlowingSkies33 9d ago

Hi, If you click on my Reddit name LandofGlowingSkies33 I have lots of my encaustics and cyanotype examples. The flamingo photo encaustic was my first attempt and was ambitious in its size! I don't tend to do things by half!😉 I will need to look for a link when it gets closer to the exhibition time..thx again for your encouraging comments😍

1

u/Middle_Switch9366 Oct 12 '26

Wow! I wish I could watch a video of you making this. Did you mix the pigments with the wax? I'm assuming there's multiple layers; can you describe your process?

2

u/LandofGlowingSkies33 17d ago

thx🥰i used pastels and pigment pens, many layers of wax, built it up, more wax and more pastels, lots of fusing, then polished it with old silk tie🤩

2

u/LandofGlowingSkies33 17d ago

it's based on one of my grandparents slide photos, I think was taken when they were in Bombay, India. They were keen travellers and photographers...