Encaustic painter Pam Caughey is ‘master of the abstract’

Hamilton-based encaustic painter Pamela Caughey can take the heat.

Encaustic (an ancient Greek word meaning “burning in”) painting is a process involving the fusion of hot wax, pigment and resin into layers onto a surface such as wood, plaster or canvas. Encaustic wax is a challenging medium to master. Outside of ancient practitioners, one notable encaustic painter is Jasper Johns.

Caughey uses encaustic and other mixed media, “to create tension between the chaos of the process and the calm of the finished product.”

“She has a sense of restraint amidst seemingly random patterns,” said Renee Kelly of the Holter Museum of Art in Helena.

An exhibit of Caughey’s latest work will be on display at Cawdrey Gallery in Whitefish from 5 to 8 p.m. July 21. Light refreshments will be served with live music by the Jeremy Quick Jazz Duo.

Raised in Wisconsin, Caughey graduated from the University of Wisconsin — Madison with a degree in biochemistry. After moving to Hamilton in 1986, she earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Montana. In 2016, her home and studio burned down in the Roaring Lion Fire, consuming most of her possessions including completed artwork, which influenced her work long after.

“Art for me has become highly experimental and a way to explore the cause and effect of navigating the space,” Caughey said in a press release. “My ultimate goal is to push out of my comfort zone to discover something new about myself, life, or the world around me. Being surrounded by mountains, valleys, forests and sunlit meadows is a great inspiration to the senses, but when I paint, my colors, surfaces and tools entice me to explore the unknown. Rather than paint what I see and understand, I paint without knowing and hope I will discover something.“

She works in many media, with a special interest in cold wax/oil, encaustic, mixed media and acrylic. Her work is in the permanent collection of several museums such as the Missoula Art Museum, Holter Museum of Art in Helena and Nicolaysen Museum of Art in Wyoming. Her art is also on display in public buildings and appears in the 2016 book “Cold Wax Medium: Techniques, Concepts, Conversations,” by Rebecca Crowell and Jerry McLaughlin.

Nancy Dunlop Cawdrey, owner of Cawdrey Gallery, said she has watched Caughey’s style evolve over the years

“First she learned all the rules. Now she can break them,” Dunlop Cawdrey said.

The risks Caughey takes in her artwork is what appeals to contemporary art collectors seeking a style different from traditional Western subject matter, according to Dunlop Cawdrey, who said six pieces have already sold.

“Cawdrey Gallery represents artists who push boundaries and are incapable of playing it safe,” she said.

For more information about the artist, visit https://www.pamelacaughey.com.