Title & Artist:  "Dressed in Plaid" – by Robin Samiljan

Medium & Size:  Mixed media: encaustic monotype fused into encaustic medium, highlighted with gold leaf and transfer foil, mounted on birch panel.  21 7/8" L x 8 5/8" H x 3/4" D.  For indoor display only.  

Note: Encaustic should not be placed in direct, all-day sunlight or near a source of heat. The wax softens when it reaches temperatures of 140 degrees and above.

Artist Statement:  My inspiration comes from relationships—between people, places, and things. I am inspired to paint a balance between what I see and what I feel. Golden hues of autumn leaves at North Pond, the ominous Gothic shadows standing in front of the Wrigley building, and the silver reflections from a fresh snow in streetlights on Broadway Street evoke feelings that exist forever in my mind. The vintage buildings along Lake Shore Drive remind me of my childhood and the many visits and family dinners at my grandparents’ apartment. I see the brownstones and skyscrapers surrounded by foliage and perennials and rediscover contentment and warmth from my past.

Using color and composition to guide me, I create a timeless mood using the encaustic medium. I build layer upon layer of paint, coaxing and creating simplified shapes into a dreamlike familiarity. Each layer is developed by adding dimension and texture with organic pigments. My artistic goal is to create a visual journey into a whimsical time and reminiscent space.

Artist Biography:  Robin Samiljan was born in Chicago and moved to the East Coast in 1988. The regional beauty of the New England landscape immediately captured her attention while she re-created nature’s gifts by way of visual art. After years of developing mastery in watercolor, Samiljan discovered encaustic painting in 2009, and her work took on new depth in multiple art mediums. Encaustic painting combines beeswax mixed with pigment and resin, melted and applied to a surface that is then fused with heat. Sculptural qualities achieved using wax have become a welcome addition to Samiljan’s impressionistic landscape paintings.

As a participating artist in the Copley Society of Art in Boston and an active exhibitor, Samiljan has established a dedicated following. Both Children’s Hospital in Boston and Newton-Wellesley Hospital have purchased multiple series of her works for their permanent collections. These paintings contribute to the peacefulness and tranquility that the hospitals strive to create for their patients and visitors. Twenty-five years later, Samiljan has moved her home back to Chicago and now looks forward to urban inspiration and developing a new patronage in the Midwest and beyond.

Hosting Business:  "Dressed in Plaid" is on display at Marblehead Outfitters, 112 Washington St., Marblehead, MA.