The Awakening

Abstract

Painting formal linear stripes in encaustic can be seen most notably in Jasper Johns Flag painting 1954-55. Johns work Flag works displays a use of thick encaustic to articulate the American flag on fabric mounted on board. The works utilize this methodology of mixing oil paint, and wax to form a thick impasto painting medium which gives substantial body to a painted mark. John’s Flag paintings exhibit uniformly painted stripes of alternating colour in a credible likeness to the original flag stimulus. What the work overlooks, is the possibility of adopting stronger painterly variation within the armature of a parallel stripe motif, to form a more organic treatment of form within such a matrix.