Yesterday provided me with new ideas for today. After yesterday’s dance with fire, I decided I wanted to play around more with wax. So I decided to get a bunch of the black candles (and two gold ones) and put them into a bowl. Then I poured boiling water into the bowl and watched as all the wax rose off the wick and went to the surface. I dipped the paper into that water and watched as the wax dripped down sheenly. I explored a bit more, even using the lighter to melt a pattern of the human form and apply melted red oil pastel over top. Playing with wax is similar to plaster to me. It’s more slippery, yes, and dries way quicker. However, it’s malleable and creates sometimes uncontrollable shapes if applied when in liquid form. It forces me to think creatively in order to make my objects appear on paper. I have to think outside the box because I can’t simply use a paintbrush to get the shapes I desire. As well as these experiments, I also melted a lot of tea lights. I kept all the burnt matches I used to melt the wax in the bowl and even included some dirt from the pot plants in my home. I enjoyed the idea of it looking unclean. I then waited until most of it was melted and poured it directly from the bowl onto the paper and watched it take its own form. There was a lot of pasty wax underneath the liquid that I mashed up and threw onto the paper. I whittled it into shape with a fork, trying not to be deliberate with any movement. I really enjoyed the result of this. It looks as though a confusing accident happened. To take things further, I melted the top with a hairdryer to make the splatter defy gravity. Throughout the past few experiments, I feel as though a lot of my work has become impulsive and quick. I’m trying not to stick to anything, to allow myself to steam ahead and generate works that interest me. I believe the wax and fire way of painting is helping me engage more with this brief. I think, for next time, if I can find a way to bring more color into my current paintings, then I will be able to open myself up to more possibilties.
First wax dipping. 
Wax and Oil Pastel. 
The Wax surface. 
Tea lights before. 
Tea lights after. 
Tea lights after after.