• Home
  • bio
  • Mixed Media Paintings
  • Encaustic Paintings
    • New Encaustic Paintings
    • Encaustic 2016
    • Encaustic Paintings
  • Rusty Ship Photo Series
  • contact
  • Karen Story Blog

Karen Story Encaustic Painting experiment using Balinese tjanting tool

6/24/2011

3 Comments

 
Picture
OK!  I'm here on Bali and spent some time a few days ago motorbiking to the busy central area of Bali to a large hardware store where I bought a propane stove and a small butane torch.  I also found some tjanting tools to use in my experiment with batik tjanting application of wax to my paintings.  The next day, I found a metal fabrication shop where I had a piece of thick steel cut to use as a palette on the stove.  Here is a photo of the young guy cutting the metal for me ($6.00).  Notice his careful use of protective gear for his eyes and body as the sparks fly!

Picture
The first visit to the batik factory!  This is a 'modern batik' factory, where the lines are drawn in wax and then the spaces are filled in with colored fabric dyes.  The wax works as a resist/dam so the colors don't run into each other.
I observed the artists and watched carefully to see how they used the tjanting tool.  The tool is a small copper cup with a tiny spout on the bottom/side of the cup.  The cup is attached to a bamboo handle.  It is dipped into hot wax, and then, as the wax flows out of the spout, it is applied to the fabric by the artist, who is following drawn lines.  In my case, I will have no drawn lines to follow.  Scary.

Picture
Picture
Yesterday, on my way to the batik factory to practice using the tjanting tool, I got my hair cut by a great young Balinese guy.  Then I crashed my motorbike!  Into a river.  Luckily, I only got some bruises and scrapes and I also got frightened quite a bit.  The motorbike lost it's mirrors.  I didn't get to the factory.  My motorbike had to be hauled out of the little river, and I had to be home and feel very shaky.  I did make it there today, on foot, and got to practice.  The artists were friendly and helped all they could, but due to my 'baby Indonesian,' I couldn't understand everything they were saying to me.  I just practiced on paper, not fabric or wood (which I will be using for my paintings).

Picture
I came back from the factory and set up all of my equipment outdoors, where there is a nice breeze to keep the sometimes toxic fumes away.  If the pots of wax get too hot, they may start to smoke, and these fumes are very unhealthy to breathe.  I found that the propane stove's lowest setting is too hot, so I kept my pots off to the side of the center of the steel plate.  Maybe I'll find some way to raise the plate away from the flame.  Anyway, the first session went well, and I was able to practice on a piece of wood which I brought from home.  The plywood here is thin and won't work well for encaustic painting.

Picture
I put down some random colors of pigmented wax on the board with a brush, and then, finally, I was practicing with the tjanting tool!!!  I painted (tjantinged) some whimsical trees.  I used this image because it has long narrow lines and dots, both of which the tjanting tool are best for.
Then I swam and had dinner, after which I painted over this image with clear encaustic medium, and scraped it back to reveal a flat image.  I'll try to take a photo of it tomorrow, but may not have time, since there's a big wedding in the village.  A young priest (18) is getting married and the village has been busy all week preparing decorations, offerings, and food for the wedding.  He's marrying a girl from an adjacent village, and there will be all sorts of processions.  A very high priest is being transported form 2 hrs away to perform the ceremony.  Very big deal.  They are expecting 2,000 people.  Not 200.  2,000.  One of my 'family' members was busy until 11 pm working on the food boxes (2,000 food boxes).  The wedding begins at 8:00 a.m, so I'd better get to sleep. 

3 Comments
Carol
6/25/2011 06:35:00 am

Hi Bali girl,
Looks like much good fun (except for the dunk in river...ouch!) Would love to see more photos of painting and the celebration. Is Greg with you? We missed you both at Joyce's. Small but intimate group experience.
Will you be back to host BG on July 10th? J&J will be away that weekend but may be around on the 17th.

Reply
Christie
7/2/2011 12:19:43 am

are you back on the motorbike?
Can't wait to see what your doing
Xo

Reply
Sue Tarkin
3/7/2014 06:53:36 am

I have several of these TJAPS that I got for watercolor batik. Kathie George wrote a book on her technique. I am an encaustic artist and was looking for ways to use TJAPS with encaustics. I also have an electric tjainting tool. Thanks for blog. Sue

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Karen Story

    Encaustic Painting experiment using Balinese tjanting tool

    Archives

    March 2014
    October 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.