BEESWAX TILES

In this collection of small treasures, you will find luminous layers of color that can only be achieved using beeswax. I would also like to acknowledge the generous contribution from the Lac insect who provides us with a natural shellac. The Lac allows me to get creative with the torch. From time to time, you may find rusty bits and some earth born inclusions in this work.

These tiles are available in my shop.

MY JOURNEY WITH BEESWAX

My exploration in working with liquid beeswax and fire is one of reverence. It is deeply gratifying and I am in awe of this ancient technique that dates back to over 4,000 years ago. Working with a mixture of beeswax and damar resin (sap of the Southeast Asian damar pine) is known as encaustic which literally means to “burn in”. It was used on Egyptian mummy paintings and the hulls of Viking ships. I prefer to focus on the wax created by the bees and not the burning in order to honor this precious gift from the bee. In its lifetime, one bee produces just one teaspoon of honey. It then takes 448 bees to collectively consume 6-8 pounds of honey in order to produce just one pound of wax.