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Hoppin’ Around Kensington

Posted by Janet Fox
Image of an encaustic painting by Janet Fox titled "Hoppin' Around Kensington."
Hoppin’ Around Kensington | encaustic (sold)

Hoppin’ Around Kensington

The 2016 Kensington “Paint the Town” Labor Day Weekend Art Show is September 3-5, 2016. One of the requirements for artists participating in this annual show is to create a painting inspired by is Maryland town. The town co-sponsors the event with the Montgomery Art Association.

In recent years, I painted the town clock across from the Kensington train station, the carved wooden eagle statue in Veterans Memorial Park and the old millstone in Flynn Park. I used encaustic for each of these paintings, realistically portraying the subject. This year, however, I decided to take a more abstract path.

About Hoppin’ Around Kensington

My 2016 “Paint the Town” entry is based loosely on a map view of the streets around the Kensington Town Hall / Armory, at 3710 Mitchell Street. I fused several layers of green and yellow shapes, in paper and encaustic representing street blocks in a map view. The green and yellow mirrors the colors on many of street markers and signs around town as well as the town clock.

This painting will be at the MAA’s “Paint the Town, 2016” Labor Day Weekend Art Show. If you’re in the area then, stop on by. I’m also showing 5 other encaustic paintings and many new pieces in my black art bin. Plus, you’ll find many other artworks by artists from the Montgomery County, Maryland region.

⇒  For information about this artwork, contact Janet Fox.

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Circling Back

Posted by Janet Fox
Image of an encaustic painting by Janet Fox titled "Circling Back."
Circling Back | encaustic (sold)

Circling back around

The end of 2015 has come and gone and we’re circling back around into a new year. Reflecting on last year, I saw various “Best of 2015” lists. What were the best movies, music and photos? Most compelling stories? Loveliest moments? Scariest events? What have we learned? What have we struggled with that needs more time to figure out?

On a personal level, I’ve felt a strong urge to sort through things, clean, rearrange, recycle what I no longer need, find new homes for reusable items, and discard what’s too worn to be useful. Some of this work is a sort of ending. And colder winter weather also keeps me inside more so it just feels like a great time to do these tasks.

Timing of new beginnings

Closing out an old year, while taking time with family and friends, allowed me to reflect on what is important. I’ve not been a big fan of New Year resolutions, but having a re-start date can be useful to focus on self improvements. This informative and humorous article by Elahe Izadi in The Washington Post points out why the new year starts on Jan. 1, noting it is a terrible time for renewal.

For me, though, the gradually increasing amount of daylight after the Winter Solstice on December 21st brings feelings of new growth. (Getting gardening seed catalogs in the mail help that along, too.) But I know the first of the year is not the only time for new growth.

Clean space for something new

With things I no longer need cleared out, I now have a blank space (or a blank canvas) to explore, create and fill. But what will I do and create? Something brings me back around to the words of the late Joseph Campbell, the famous American scholar of world mythology. His answer when asked this kind of question was “to follow your bliss.” The Painter’s Keys Art Quotes has this great list of Joseph Campbell quotes. I hope you enjoy them!

So I’m trying to stay aware and recognize what brings me happiness and joy so I can fill my space with more of that. Creating art and exploring my and others’ dream realms are a few of the blissful, energizing paths I am on.

About Circling Back Around

In this contemporary encaustic painting, I created roundish shapes and paths. Layering papers and colors reminded me of how I often repeat similar things, although no two times are identical. I chose a thin silver cord for skipping around, for a light feeling.

So here we go again, but with another year of experience under our collective belt. What changes need to be made… and can we muster the courage and energy to make them?

What blissful paths are you following?

⇒  For information about commissioning a similar artwork, contact Janet Fox.

Bridging the Divide

Posted by Janet Fox
Image of an encaustic painting by Janet Fox titled "Bridging the Divide."
Bridging the Divide | encaustic

What is a bridge? What is a divide?

We have all experienced them in some form. According to Merriam Webster, a bridge is primarily “a structure carrying a pathway or roadway over a depression or obstacle,” and “a time, place, or means of connection or transition.” Some bridges go in one direction, while others allow movement both ways. I think of dreams as a bridge between the conscious and subconscious realms.

The divide is the area between either ends of the bridge. Some divides are starkly clear, while others are cloudy. Sometimes we know what to expect on the other side, while other times we are in for an unknown adventure.

Why cross the bridge?

To get to the other side, of course. To grow and experience new things, connect with others, and live life more fully, people are bridging all kinds of boundaries and obstacles every day. Some can help by building bridges so others can cross over in safety. Sometimes, we “burn bridges” after crossing them, making it impossible to go back the way we came.

When to cross the divide?

When we get there. Or when we are allowed to go, like after a drawbridge closes or after we have passed inspection by boundary guards. We must wait until we have built up the courage, energy and resources to make the trip. Or when despair, coupled with a glimmer of hope, drives us forward. We might need to wait for others to escort us. Sometimes, we decide not to take the journey. Sometimes, a part of us remains behind or dies in the crossing.

About Bridging the Divide

In this encaustic painting, I used my favorite turquoise and its complementary color to represent opposite sides of a divide. The figures on this misty bridge can pass back and forth, like travelers between the waking world and dreaming realm.

How are you bridging the divides in life?

⇒  For information about purchasing this artwork, contact Janet Fox.

Comings and Goings aka Orbit Machine

Posted by Janet Fox
Image of an encaustic painting by Janet Fox titled "Orbit Machine #7."
Comings and Goings (aka Orbit Machine #7) | encaustic

Launching into orbit

Life is so busy. There’s much movement every day. I wake up and find the energy to launch from my home base, going to this place and then the next one. At the end of the day, I return home.

These paths feel like a sort of orbit, circling around my home but always returning to it.

Crossing paths

While traveling, I cross over streets and boundaries. My path intersects with many others. Sometimes our paths align and we travel together for a while. When we’re together, we interact in countless ways.

Moving around

The transportation machines of modern life, like bikes, cars, transit and planes, physically move us around.

Technology enables us travel even further, going to far-away countries, interacting with people around the globe, and connecting in online meeting spaces.

Spacecraft, like NASA’s New Horizons, take us to the far reaches of our known world, circling back to us through images sent through space.

Books transport the reader to real and imagined settings. Spiritual practices help us get to mystical, non-physical states.

About Comings and Goings (aka Orbit Machine #7)

This encaustic art, Comings and Goings (aka Orbit Machine #7), represents the motions of life moving around in a weekly cycle. First going here, then there, then over there, and circling back around to home. I layered colorful pastel-infused papers fused in encaustic media in this three-piece painting, cutting grooves to fill in more colors.

Where do your daily travels take you?

⇒  For information about purchasing this artwork, contact Janet Fox.Save

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Seeking My Path

Posted by Janet Fox
Image of an encaustic painting by Janet Fox titled "Seeking My Path."
Seeking My Path | encaustic (sold)

Which path to take?

These are two primal questions… Where did I come from? Where am I going? Answers are infinitely varied but could be here or there; forward or backward; up, down, right or left; north, south, east or west. I could go on, but what if, instead of going a specific direction in the external world, we turned things around 180 degrees and head inward? How do “the seeking” and “the path” depend on each other?

A clear or foggy path?

Whether traveling from the inside out or the outside in, the path can be clearly marked, foggy with low visibility or somewhere in-between. When the external world is overwhelming, turning inward can bring relief and calm. If the internal world is chaotic, turning outward can bring connection with others and help to see new perspectives.

Some others’ thoughts you might enjoy:

About Seeking My Path

This encaustic painting simultaneously shows a path in and a path out. While the yellow bricks can go in many different directions, the undefined area exemplifies the realm of the unknown. Which direction to go? North, south, east, west, up, down, forward, backward, inside? Are multiple directions possible at the same time?

In which direction(s) are you going?

⇒  For information about commissioning a similar piece, contact Janet Fox.