In conjunction with the exhibition Understory, featured in the Clifford B. West and Rebecca Lawrence Gallery Entry
Encaustic is an ancient method of painting with pigmented waxes. Encaustics have been used since at least the 1st century BCE in Egypt. “Encaustic” comes from the Greek word “enkaustikos,” meaning “to burn in.” Stephanie Gordon started painting with encaustics after seeing the fabled encaustic Fayum mummy portraits at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She was struck by their beauty and luminosity. Encaustic paints are made of beeswax, resin, and pigment. They range from transparent to opaque. Other materials can be embedded in the wax. Gordon incorporates handmade papers, foils, thread, and image transfers into the work. She also draws into the paintings with oil pastels or pencils. Her current work grew out of prior work with mixed media photographs. She loves the process of imagining and creating an environment that takes her out into the woods.
Biography | Stephanie Gordon has made art her whole life. She is a practicing artist and art teacher who has worked in many media and taught people of all ages. Gordon is from Cleveland, Ohio, where the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art influenced her from a young age. She received her BFA from the University of Michigan College of Art and Design and studied art and culture in France during her junior year. She moved to the Upper Valley in 1979, where she worked as a stained-glass artist, designer, painter, and educator. She taught art for many years at Hanover High. Struck by the beauty and luminosity of the encaustic Fayum mummy portraits at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, she resolved to master this ancient medium. She took classes at the Penland School of Art, the Maine College of Art, and the NH Institute of Art on painting with encaustics. Having used the medium for 16 years, she now also teaches classes in encaustic painting. Stephanie Gordon’s work has won awards, appeared in many juried exhibitions, and been collected regionally and nationally.
