Events

Cat Crotchett: Cross References

Join us to celebrate the opening of Cross References: The Indonesia Paintings during Art Hop, 6-9 p.m., Friday, May 7. This installation of encaustic paintings by WMU Professor of Art, Cat Crotchett, is inspired by Cat’s research in Indonesia and is a dialog between encaustic painting and the art of Javanese batik.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION: This exhibition describes a recent project is to initiate a cross–cultural dialog between wax working artists by introducing encaustic painting techniques to Indonesian visual artists, most specifically to Javanese batik artists, through a series of encaustic workshops. These workshops created an opportunity to exchange information about the use of materials and tools from different wax working traditions in addition to speaking to our divergent and intersecting uses of pattern and pattern structure. From this unique experience, I have begun creating a series of encaustic paintings that incorporate Indonesian batik patterns and the use of traditional batik tools to make connections between eastern and western traditions and practices in visual art and culture.

This work was supported by grants from the Faculty Research and Creative Activities Award; The College of Fine Arts; The Diether H. Haenicke Institute for Global Education; The Frostic School of Art, Western Michigan University and The Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo. This project also received donations from R & F Handmade Paints in Kingston, NY and received support in Indonesia from Anetena Projects, Barbaran Segaragunung and Taman Budaya.