Thursday, August 16, 2007

The Tea House Project, October 20,21 at Gallery/50 Belcher Street



Tea House #129, 18"x48", encaustic on wood panel

The Tea House Project will be a one woman show of encaustic paintings by
Eileen P. Goldenberg.

The weekend of October 20-21 is also the third Open Studios weekend for the Castro. I will be exhibiting approximately 50 paintings from this series, as well as a selection of teapots and related ceramics that I also create.

"Tea House" comes from a book I was listening to while painting in my studio. It is about the authentic ritual of Chado or Tea that was practiced in Japan in the 1800's. As a ceramic artist I have studied this ceremony and have always loved the ideals followed. Tea is about relaxation and taking time from your everyday, busy life and spending time enjoying tea with others. It also involves setting up the tea room and the art of creating a beautiful serene space.

The book had a profound effect on my paintings and I began a series of paintings that start with covering the entire panel with thousands of small domes of wax. I then paint on many layers of color, fusing between each layer. When all the layers have been applied, I then scrape the surface back so the dots begin to emerge. It is like archaeology, I excavate until I see the image I want.
The repetitive nature of this work evokes meditation and calmness for me. The colors; rich
Vermilion, Indian Yellow, Magenta, etc add the emotional content and movement to the work.


Tea House #128, 18"x48", encaustic on wood panel


Tea House #156, 18"x20" encaustic on wood panel