Jeanne Borofsky: 'Natural Expression'

Jeanne Borofsky – Artist Statement

Most of my current work is encaustic collage.  Encaustic - painting with hot colored beeswax and damar resin - is a medium that was used by the ancient Greeks as far back as 400 BC. Having grown up in the country I have always looked to nature to center myself - to restore balance to my mind and my world. I spend time in the woods or by the water letting the rhythms of the world become part of me. I create encaustic monotypes with patterns reminiscent of barks and leaves or water, and collage them onto panels, adding many bits of ephemera, both natural and not. I have often felt the way Alexander Calder felt when he said, “I want to make things that are fun to look at, that have no propaganda value whatsoever”. Stamps, maps and electronic bits are ever present in my work, nothing seems complete without one or the other. Creatures abound, and sometimes they are the main focus of my attention. I love the way beeswax creates both physical and visual depth and translucency to my work - adding to the mystery and magic I’m trying to understand and convey.  Whatever I put into my art, it always includes the joy of creation, the love of art, and the happiness in my ability to create it.