Karen Jury’s creative process begins long before she steps into the studio. Inspired by the natural world, she captures moments through her camera lens—images that later serve as the foundation for her work. But it's what happens next that defines her distinctive style: through a dynamic interplay of wax, heat, texture, and pigment, Karen transforms each photograph into something richly layered and uniquely her own. Read on to uncover the layered process behind the creation of her photo encaustic paintings.
Step1
The first step to creating my Photo Encaustic Paintings is to choose the right photograph. Karen likes to look back at my catalog of images and choose some black and whites when creating portraits. She prints them onto a fine art archival paper and mount onto a wooden panel to starts.
Step 2
A mixture of beeswax/resin is melted to the proper temp, using a laser thermometer to keep from smoking. When working on larger pieces, she ensures that she has a large amount of the product ready.
Pro tip: Safety and ventilation is important once one starts the waxing procedure. A fan is used to remove fumes from work space.
Step 3
Wax is brushed onto artwork using a natural bristle brush.
Pro tip: Do not use synthetic, the bristles will likely melt.
Step 4
After each layer of wax is added, a heat gun is used to fuse all the layers together.
Pro tip: Don't hold too close to wax or it will melt and form a puddle.
Step 5
She then uses her various scraping tools to scrape away wax and create texture on the surface of the artwork.
The photo on the left shows how she uses a scraping took to gently remove a layer of wax.
At this stage, she also adds pigments and pencil marks to add depth to the various compositional elements.
Follow @karenjuryphotography on Instagram to tune into news and updates from Karen. View her work in our online shop.