Artist: Paul Fontana
Medium: Encaustic on wood panel
Artist statement:
"I was a free-range kid in New York City in the '40s and '50s, when you could do that. Growing up in Brooklyn, school trips to museums and exposure to the arts imprinted on me. I had a Brownie Hawkeye camera that was almost always with me, so I was composing, looking at light and shadow and becoming fascinated with color.
"I never attended art school. However, I can tell you that I love to paint and that whatever I paint will be colorful. I began painting realistically, but felt my real calling was expressing myself through color more than form. So, I consider myself more of a colorist - how one color looks next to another, how it complements or contrasts are all areas of exploration.
"I went from oil paint to acrylic to encaustic, which actually uses oil paint in beeswax, so I feel as though I've come full circle and I continue to create in each medium and explore more."
More Info
To see this piece and others by local artists, head to Area 61 gallery at 721 Broad St., Suite 100.