This work is from a series of formal compositions of quiet horizontal abstraction, based in the Venetian tradition of “colore” (color as the basis of art) produces a Depiction of Atmosphere (the Unseen Air) as both subject and object. Here, subtle grey tones produce a palpable density and optical resonance capturing the delicate diffused light and hidden modalities of nature and metamorphosis.
The images Yntema creates are the result of accumulated, semi-translucent layers of color.
The beeswax gives a dimensional quality to whatever surface she paints on. Despite the buildup of layers, the qualities of the wax also imbue an ephemeral lightness to the pictures, as light is allowed to pass through the top layer to illuminate the layers beneath. The process of creating these pictures is slow and deliberate, and that sense of the building up of time is important to the work.
Yntema is inspired by the way light interacts with the natural landscape. She uses color and space as a way of examining light.
Janise Yntema is an American abstract painter currently living and working in Brussels, Belgium.
She works with the ancient technique of encaustic wax, a combination of beeswax, resin and pigments in which heat serves as the active solvent.