Featured Large Royal academy encaustic painting

hi folks

picked up a few nice bits at the thrifts today, including this large labeled as encaustic? painting

has a label from a royal academy of arts exhibition

i've had a few black and white ones very similar recently and wondering if from the same artist

can't find any info on the artist though

behind glass so hard to get a decent shot

any thoughts or info appreciated

 

I like the colors,don't think encaustic's used much these days.Nice it was shown in the RAC exhibition.

 

An unusual surname Smy. Perhaps related to this Devonshire-based painter?

https://www.smycontemporaryart.com/home

Debora

 

hmm interesting, might be worth shooting her an email, thanks deb

 

yeah new one on me bosk. seems to mean :

'Encaustic painting is a technique where pigments are mixed with hot liquid wax and applied to a surface, usually wood, canvas, or other materials. The molten mixture is then fused onto the surface with heat, creating a durable and lasting image'

 

This is a label you get when you submit your picture for entry, it doesn’t mean it appeared in the exhibition. I have a one myself which got through the first round of submission but not through to the second. (David Hockney had a whole room to himself that year with his massive Grand Canyon paintings)

 

Charlie, don’t leave the picture near to a hot radiator or heat source as it can melt.

 

that makes sense thanks house, so might not have even got through

surprised that i can't find any info on him though as its seems quite proficient

was out sunbathing with me for a while today

 

Here are Roman mummy portraits done in encaustic almost 2,000 years ago.
https://www.google.com/search?clien...HVF2NJ0QtKgLegQIFxAB&biw=1231&bih=579&dpr=1.5

 

cool! they ALL remind me a little of frida kahlo but that might just be the eyebrows

 

They def have those Latin (Latino) faces. Here's the lowdown-
'The Fayum portraits, also known as Fayum mummy portraits, were created during the Roman period in Egypt, specifically between the 1st-3rd centuries CE, possibly extending into the early 4th century.These realistic painted portraits were attached to mummies, covering the faces of the deceased.'
Almost as good as Madam Tussaud's !

 

Interesting technique,but I think that will give me a headache if I look at it long enough.

 

The Met has quite a nice collection.

https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2000/mummy-portraits/photo-gallery

Debora

 

so i'm guessing the paintings reflected the image of the deceased. actually like an individuals portrait ?

 

The Fayum portraits are as close as we'll get (pending AI or God) to looking at an ancient Roman 'eye to eye'.The other (hyper ?) realistic Roman art movement occurred during the Republican Period and is known as 'Verism' (verisimilitude-'the appearance of being true or real').It was a sculpture-style that focused on accurate representations of facial features and expressions,including wrinkles,imperfections,etc.
PS-If you Google 'Ancient Realism' you'll prob find some instances of earlier representations of realistic portraiture (there's always precedence).

 

While this is no doubt done in encaustic, it does not show off the medium to any advantage. The advantage of using encaustic is the luminosity and depth acheived through layering. This is pretty thinly applied and might as well be paint..... IMHO.

 

You can check the names in the Catalogue of all the Exhibitors in 1996 Summer Exhibition as there’s a list on the RA website.
I had quick look but didn’t see any Smy there.