I’ve been so obsessed with maps lately that I can’t stop painting them. I think it’s mainly because they have so much meaning. A map is essentially just a picture of straight and curved lines. But if you recognize the place it represents, you can find your home, your old school, your best friends house, and so many other meaningful pin pricks on this otherwise innocuous picture.
I’ve lived in a lot of places throughout my life, and when I stumbled upon the idea of doing an encaustic map cube, I knew right away I had to put a different city on each side. Though, I do think it would be pretty cool to try and do one city and have all the sides blend into the other. Not sure how that would work, but it would be fun to try.
Would you like to commission a cube for you and your family? Contact me at classicanj@gmail.com and we will discuss cities, colors, and timeline for delivery. This painting would be a fabulous Christmas present for anyone on your list!
I know it looks a little messy. What doesn’t show in the video is that I actually messed up a bit on this project. Usually when I fill in my lines with oil paint, I wipe the excess paint away immediately with a paper towel and some linseed oil. This time, I was working on a few projects at a time, and once I added oil paint to 3 sides, I laid the cube down and didn’t come back to it for a couple days. By that time, the thin layer of oil paint on those 3 sides had dried to the point where the linseed oil wouldn’t take it off. I had to scrape it away with a clay tool, and that’s why some of the sides look a bit messier than they should.
So, important tip- don’t let your oil paint sit on the surface of your encaustic painting for more than a day if you want to be able to wipe it off.
Despite my mistakes, though, I love the way this map cube turned out. What a fun way to commemorate the special places and memories in your life!
