Apis Opus Encaustic Invitational
Apis Opus Encaustic Invitational
NKollectiv
960 Santa Fe Drive, Denver, CO 80204
May 17-June 16, 2024
Admission: free
Review by Dani/elle Cunningham
The artist-run gallery NKollectiv is currently hosting its second annual encaustic invitational, which showcases the work of sixteen Colorado artists specializing in this ancient art form. [1] Named Apis Opus, the exhibition cleverly combines the world of bees and art, highlighting beeswax as the primary medium in encaustic work. Encaustic is made by heating layers of beeswax mixed with pigment and applying it to different substrates.
An installation view of the Apis Opus Encaustic Invitational exhibition at NKollectiv gallery in Denver. Image courtesy of NKollectiv.
What sets encaustic apart from other art materials is that beeswax is a sustainable natural resource produced by honeybees during the construction of honeycombs. It can be harvested without significantly disrupting bee colonies when sourced responsibly by beekeepers. At a time when artists are increasingly exploring the impact of humanity’s exploitation of nature, encaustic offers a meaningful and environmentally friendly option that speaks directly to the ecological interdependence of humans and the environment.
A view of the Apis Opus Encaustic Invitational exhibition at NKollectiv gallery. Image courtesy of NKollectiv.
One of the most captivating elements of this exhibition is its unintentional, exclusively female lineup. The artists' work, ranging from abstract to figurative, draws inspiration from the natural world, reflecting the influence of encaustic's organic origins on the artists’ conceptual decisions. Due to multiple submissions from invited and member artists, curator Nicole Korbe had seemingly little choice but to embrace a salon-style hanging, resulting in a rich and immersive visual experience.
A view of four works by Linda Armacost in the Apis Opus Encaustic Invitational exhibition at NKollectiv gallery. Image courtesy of NKollectiv.
Vibrant colors, irregular shapes, and ample textures fill every wall, making it difficult at times to process visual information or properly see pieces hung above the average person’s eye level. Adding to the confusion, the gallery is littered with artworks that are not part of the current exhibition. Nonetheless, there is much to appreciate throughout the gallery.
Alane Holsteen, Floral Sculpture, 2023, encaustic on plaster, 12 x 10 inches. Image courtesy of NKollectiv.
Alane Holsteen's unique vessels stand out as the only sculptures in the exhibition. Despite titles referencing flowers, these three sculptures also resemble seashells and coral, demonstrating nature’s symmetry on land and in the ocean. Floral Sculpture catches the eye with its soft seeming, folded white surface, which is pristine and reminiscent of porcelain.
Alane Holsteen, Floral Bowl 1, 2023, encaustic on paperclay, 8 x 8 inches. Image courtesy of NKollectiv.
Floral Bowl 1 is no less intriguing with a captivating swirl of magenta and earthy brown pigments confined to its well. Lastly, Floral Bowl 4, also white, exhibits an intriguing texture similar to that of a popcorn ceiling, which ordinarily might not be appealing but in this instance, is somehow calming and pleasurable to look at. Holsteen’s body of work exudes personality, each artwork remaining structurally distinct though connected through a similar aesthetic.
A view of Alane Holsteen’s works in the Apis Opus Encaustic Invitational. Image by Dani/elle Cunningham.
Contrasting with Holsteen’s minimalism, Mary Lynn Baird’s work is equally striking. Baird’s work is small and characterized by abundant color, executed in repeatedly modified shapes and compressed onto multilayered surfaces. Known for her signature, mid-century modern aesthetic, Baird’s work in this exhibition is unsurprising though somehow never boring. Baird knows how to strategically place pigment for maximum impact, but it is her liberation from the rules that generates the true interest.
Mary Lynn Baird, It’s Complicated, 2024, encaustic and clay monotype on wood, 10 inches in diameter. Image by Dani/elle Cunningham.
In It’s Complicated, Baird builds energy in the round object using a balanced color palette of warm and cool tones. However, the work is asymmetrical, refuting the conventional understanding of beauty.
Mary Lynn Baird, Ten Layers Deep, 2024, encaustic and clay monotype on wood, 24 x 6 inches. Image courtesy of NKollectiv.
Another example is Ten Layers Deep, which also embraces asymmetry, with its tall, narrow, rectangular shape covered in seemingly spontaneous, off-center designs. Baird employs her often-used retro color palette of mint green and dusty orange, stylistically complimenting her apparent fondness for ‘70s-era architecture and design. The title aptly reflects the layering capacity of encaustic, allowing viewers to gain insight into the medium’s intricate and multi-step process.
Shannon Mello, Salt Flats, 2024, encaustic on wood, 14 x 8 inches. Image courtesy of NKollectiv.
Following the exhibition’s homage to nature, Shannon Mello’s atmospheric landscapes contribute a serene tone. Though the overall wooden surface of Salt Flats is small, the cerulean sky appears vast, stretching above a narrow band of terra cotta-colored landscape, which contrasts with pale ivory salt flats.
Shannon Mello, On the Fence, 2024, encaustic on wood, 12 x 10 inches. Image courtesy of NKollectiv.
Her other works, On the Fence and Wrapped, are similarly atmospheric though their subjects are more difficult to discern. Both feature layered, swirling bands of color laid onto the uncolored wooden panels.
A view of Shannon Mello’s works in the Apis Opus Encaustic Invitational. Image by Dani/elle Cunningham.
Like Mello, Jennifer Wilson's four submissions evoke nature, though they situate human figures within the environment. Wilson’s artwork manifests nostalgia as much as it explores the connection between humans and their surroundings.
Jennifer Wilson, Memory of a Day, 2023, encaustic on wood, 16 x 16 inches. Image courtesy of NKollectiv.
Memory of a Day is especially revealing, featuring a cluster of black-and-white figures facing away from the observer, embracing one another with arms hanging loosely around each other’s shoulders. The nearby trees, resembling collages constructed from newsprint, further contribute to the nostalgic atmosphere of the artwork. These black-and-white figures coupled with the newsprint trees serve as the main catalysts for evoking memories related to a specific time and location that may be unfamiliar to the viewer yet resonate deeply within them.
Jennifer Wilson, The Reader, 2023, encaustic on wood panel, 14 x 14 inches. Image courtesy of NKollectiv.
Trained as a graphic designer, Wilson adheres to traditional design principles such as employing contrasting colors, creating a focal point, and paying attention to the hierarchy of elements. However, she also incorporates spontaneous splashes of color that disrupt these conventional norms. She reveals her willingness to embrace chance and inject an element of defiance into what could have been a saccharine composition. This is compounded by the heavy texture on the lower third of the work, which introduces an element of disorder, adding depth and challenging expectations. Overall, Wilson's use of nostalgia and her balance between play and technique provides layers of meaning in her work beyond its visual aesthetics.
An installation view of the Apis Opus Encaustic Invitational exhibition at NKollectiv gallery. Image courtesy of NKollectiv.
By emphasizing the profound connection between humans and nature, the Apis Opus exhibition highlights how our choice of art materials is closely intertwined with the preservation of the natural world. It also aims to blend dozens of disparate concepts within a non-thematic group setting—a task that proves challenging for most curators. Despite these obstacles, the exhibition successfully achieves a sense of cohesion through shared color palettes, complex, multilayered surfaces, and the smaller scale of most artworks. These elements serve to reinforce the message that humans and nature are intricately linked. Viewers are encouraged to contemplate their own relationships with the environment and are hopefully inspired to make conscious choices in both art mediums and everyday life practices.
Dani/elle Cunningham (she/her) is an artist, scholar, and independent curator. She writes about science fiction, gender, sexuality, and disability, with an emphasis on mental illness. The co-founder of chant cooperative, an artist co-op, she holds a master’s degree in art history and museum studies from the University of Denver.
[1] The artists in the exhibition are Linda Armacost, Kelly Austin-Rolo, Mary Lynn Baird, Anne Clark, Melody Epperson, Victoria Eubanks, Kathy Fisher, Alane Holsteen, Ashton Lacy Jones, Gigia Kolouch, Nicole Korbe, Lois Lupica, Shannon Mello, Michele Messenger, Beth Wadsworth, and Jennifer Wilson.
