Artist Profile: Brenda Rehrig

Abstract Encaustic Paintings

By Heike Hellmann-Brown

The Greek term encaustikos refers to the process of adding the element of heat to a painting. An encaustic painting is created by melting beeswax and resin together and adding color pigments, Brenda Rehrig explains. Multiple layers of wax are built up on top of a birch panel in reliefs. Each layer is fused to the previous one through heat. The composition of colors and layers creates the optical effect of the piece.

The ancient technique of using molten beeswax dates back to the Greeks, who caulked ship hulls and decorated warships with wax. During the first three centuries A.D. the process was used in Egyptian mummy portraits. In spite of their fragile appearance encaustic paintings are extremely archival. The famous Fayum funeral portraits, panel paintings of the Coptic period, are well preserved and retained their brilliant colors through the centuries due to the protection of the wax.

Born in Pennsylvania, encaustic painter Rehrig studied political science at Kennesaw University and worked as a paralegal for 10 years. She then took pottery from a hobby to a profession, selling sculptures and functional pottery at art festivals throughout Georgia. A former president of the Georgia Clay Council, Brenda Rehrig was granted a fellowship in The Hambidge Centers Creative Residency Program, where she encountered an encaustic artist and was utterly fascinated by this art form.

She began studying with critically-acclaimed New York encaustic artist Michael David. Encaustic accretion meaning the build-up of wax on surfaces takes a lot of skill, the artist notes. The learning process was frustrating at times. The average size of Rehrigs paintings is 40 inches x 40 inches or larger, and she produces one piece at a time. Inspired by her love and respect for the natural world, Rehrig explores texture and luminosity by starting with a basic concept such as Fog or Water or Sunrise and lets the colors guide her. I am trying to get away as far as possible from pictorial art. Through the use of certain colors I create a mood rather than a scene.

Rehrigs finished pieces are custom framed, so that the accretion on the sides is showcased. While pre-planning and actual production of an encaustic piece can take up an entire month, the artist finds it difficult to title her work. Titling narrows the concept. Id rather want the onlookers imagination take them somewhere, Rehrig says.

Brenda Rehrig, who is represented by a renowned Atlanta gallery, is currently exploring other applications for her work: Bronzing my paintings would allow for an outdoor setting. The artwork would weather beautifully, and the very intriguing end product would complement my existing path.

When she is not in her studio, Rehrig is a dog trainer. With her therapy dog, Border Collie Sadie, she visits twice a month the Hickory Flat library for the Tail-Waggin Tutors program that practices reading skills and builds self-esteem in kids by allowing them to read to a four-legged companion.

BrendaRehrig.com