Janise Yntema’s practice is focused on the ancient painting technique of beeswax encaustic. For over 25 years Yntema has refined her use of this material and has become widely known for her work in this technique. In the past she has worked with marble dust, aluminium, iron powder and wood, but she has found a subtlety rarely found in artificial materials in her use of wax. Her paintings are created from numerous applications of translucent pigmented wax, fused together with a blowtorch to create a smooth and glossy skin-like surface. With her recent inclusion of original photography in her works, she has brought a contemporary platform to this historic medium, obscuring the boundary between photography and painting.
Continually intrigued by the fine line between figuration and abstraction, Yntema’s works merge the digital with the ancient. Yntema alters the ‘truth’ of painting, questioning how reality is located when the manipulated and objective are combined. Her beautifully tranquil pieces have a sense of silent simplicity, creating an atmosphere of transcendent lightness. Human presence is minimised while the inherent beauty of nature is foregrounded.
‘With her affinity for the land and attraction towards the spiritual, Yntema's paintings embrace the primal and unseen found both in the world that surrounds and within. Sharing within the romantic tradition, her works rest firmly within the realm of the sublime.'
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Under the Volcano,Beeswax, resin, pigment and photo on canvas100cm x 100cm (39.4" x 39.4")
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The Five Fifteen,Beeswax, resin, pigment and photo on canvas107cm x 122cm (42.1" x 48")
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Chasing the Dragon,beeswax, resin, pigment and photo on canvas100cm x 140cm (39.4" x 55.1")
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The Other Shore,beeswax, resin and pigment on photo on panel60cm x 60cm (23.6" x 23.6")
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As Above,beeswax, resin and pigment on photo on panel110cm x 100cm (43.3" x 39.4")
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Constance of Nature,beeswax and pigment on photo on panel140cm x 150cm (55.1" x 59.1")
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Farther 2018,beeswax, resin and pigment on photo on panel110cm x 100cm (43.3" x 39.4")
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Gweilo,beeswax and pigment on photo on panel122cm x 194cm (48" x 76.4")
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Morning Sky,Beeswax, resin, pigment and photo60cm x 60cm (23.6" x 23.6")
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New Morning,Beeswax, resin, pigment and photo on canvas160cm x 210cm (63" x 82.7")
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Punya, 2018,beeswz, resin and pigment on photo on panel140cm x 150cm (55.1" x 59.1")
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Someplace Else 2018,beeswax, resin and pigment on photo on panel137cm x 120cm (53.9" x 47.2")
More recently, Yntema has used her work with beeswax and with landscape to focus on environmental concerns. She has presented numerous lectures challenging the viability of wax encaustic, the oldest known painting technique, in this modern age. Janise Yntema has exhibited internationally, including at the Smithsonian, and her work is included in numerous renowned collections such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art and the Art Institute of Chicago.
Education
2018-20 |
Paris School of Arts and Culture, University of Kent, MA, History and Philosophy of Art |
1980-84 | Parson’s School of Design, New York City, BFA |
1979 | Art Students League, New York City |
Selected Solo Exhibitons
2019 | 'A Sense of Place', Cadogan Gallery, London, UK |
2014 | Libre Choix Cabinet Artistique, Bruxelles, Belgium |
1997 | A.I.R. Gallery, New York City, US (also in 1995/1993) |
1996 | Watchung Arts Center, Watchung, New Jersey, US - award show |
Selected 2 & 3 Person Exhibitions
2012 | Galerie Josine Bokhoven, Amsterdam, The Netherlands - 2 person |
2003 | Cadogan Galery, London, UK - 2 person |
1998 | Soho 20, New York City, US. Invitational - 3 person |
Watchung Arts Center, Watchung, New Jersey, US. Invitational Exhibition- 2 person | |
1994 | William Carlos Williams Center for the Arts, Rutherford, New Jersey, US. Award Show - 2 person |
1993 | Tribeca 148 Gallery, New York City, US. - 3 person |
Selected Group Exhibitions
2014 | A.I.R. Gallery, New York City, US (exhibited regularly since 1989) |
2001 | Stephen Lacey Gallery, London, UK |
1998 | Smithsonian Institute’s Archive of American Art, New York City, US |
1996 | The Arsenal Gallery, Central Park, New York City, US |
1994 | Brooke Alexander Gallery, New York City, US |
Public Collections
THE NETHERLANDS |
Phillips Corporation, Eindhoven |
PTS Software, Utrecht |
School voor Filosophie, Amsterdam |
Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam |
GERMANY |
Gutenberg Museum, Mainz |
UK |
Leigh Day & Co., London, |
USA |
Amherst College, Amherst, Massachusetts |
Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois |
Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, New York |
Carnegie Institute Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
Cincinnati Museum of Art, Ohio |
Hoggard Wagner Collection, New York City |
Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, Oklahoma |
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City |
Milwaukee Arts Museum, Wisconsin |
Museum of Modern Art Archives, New York City |
National Museum for Women in the Arts, Washington, D.C. |
Provincetown Art Association and Museum, Rhode Island |
Yale University Art Gallery, Connecticut |
As part of the 1993 A.I.R. Portfolio included in the departments of Prints & Drawings |