Lisa Ferrari
Lisa Ferrari
Lisa Ferrari is a multimedia artist who specialises in encaustic wax. She is dedicated to exploring the infinite possibilities of encaustic wax, especially working with texture on panels and ceramics pieces.
Discovering encaustic wax in 2020, during the long Melbourne Covid-19 lockdowns, she had time to devour any and all YouTube videos and online courses that she could find about encaustic wax. The medium is not well known in Australia, so online courses, including Painting with Fire 2020/21, were instrumental in Lisa learning all she could at the time about the medium and how she could use it in a myriad of ways. Once the pandemic closures were over, she and her artist son, Benny Archer, joined a local pottery studio to learn about clay and how to use it in their artistic play. They completed a six-month hand-building course at Warrandyte Pottery Studio, and both now use those skills within their artistic portfolio. Lisa is particularly interested in using encaustic wax as a glaze on ceramics. She is fascinated by how the wax can give her sculptural pieces texture that is more difficult to accomplish with traditional ceramic glazes.
Lisa, and her son, Benny, own and operate Gallery 7six5, established in 2020 for local artists to exhibit their work. The gallery is located on the outskirts of Melbourne in the renown Yarra Valley wine region.
An exhibiting member of Melbourne art groups: Thou Art Mum, Nillumbik Artists Open Studios, Creative Wild Co and Red Door Studios, and also exhibiting regularly at Gallery 7six5, Lisa is kept busy creating throughout the year, as well as conducting one-on-one and group encaustic wax workshops. Lisa has also exhibited in juried shows, including the Eltham Art Show and at the Museum of Encaustic Art in New Mexico USA. Her artwork, ‘Lonely Blue-banded Bee’ was acquired by the museum after being exhibited in the ‘Climate Change is REAL’ international exhibition in 2023.
—
You can view Lisa’s work at:
Class Details
The Fusion of Elements: When Encaustic Wax Meets Clay
Imagine the earthy resilience of clay merging with the warm, translucent beauty of encaustic wax - a technique that beckons the past but feels provocatively modern. Your artistic instincts are about to embark on a transformative journey in "The Fusion of Elements: When Encaustic Wax meets Clay," where boundaries blur and new possibilities emerge.
Within these lessons, you'll be guided through a practical course where the tactile pleasure of clay becomes the canvas for the luminous finish and texture of encaustic wax. This is a comprehensive immersion into the union of two ancient practices reinvented for contemporary expression. Get ready to dive into the delicate balance of creating texture on a ceramic 3D surface.
Throughout this three-part course, I will talk about the different types of clay suitable for this art form. Earthenware, known for its earthy texture and innate toughness, will most likely become your canvas and foundation. I find the ‘groggier’ the better as it gives the wax something to adhere to.
You'll also learn how to carefully drizzle and brush on layers of wax to add texture and form to your sculptural creations. The materials required for these lessons, from the medium to the pigments and the torch, are all integral elements of this course. A PDF is included for materials and safety guidelines for your convenience.
Creating texture on ceramic pieces is more than just a stylistic choice; it's an intimate dialogue between the artist and their work. Each ripple, notch, or indentation you imprint onto your ceramic piece carries your emotions and artistic thoughts, adding depth to your story. Furthermore, the tangible, three-dimensional appeal of texture enhances the visual dance of light and shadow on your art piece, emphasizing its unique shape and contours. It's an experience that captivates the viewer, inviting them not just to look, but also to touch and feel your artistic narrative from their own perspective.
As we navigate this class, each lesson is punctuated with my personal anecdotes and insights, handy tips, and of course, step-by-step demonstrations, including moments of sheer marvel when mud and wax woo each other, creating poetry on pottery. Together, we will get our hands dirty, figuratively, and literally, rise to challenges as they come, and most importantly, keep the flame of creativity burning.
Come, immerse yourself in a course that respects antiquity, but thrives on reinvention. Because art is more than just expression; it's about exploration, experimentation, and above all, evolution.
