Janise Yntema is noted as one of the foremost contemporary artists working in encaustic painting, the ancient technique composed of beeswax, resin and pigment fused with heat. Her process involves a slow application of pigmented and translucent layers of wax, to create an effect of diffused light. She has brought a contemporary platform to this historic medium.

This use of beeswax draws the conversation to environmental concerns. One recent portfolio focuses on red-listed critically endangered plants. This body of work is part of an ongoing exploration into changing environmental histories and the effects of climate change. Each image portrays either an extinct or critically endangered species from the red list global inventory. Inspired by plant classification systems of the 17th and 18th centuries as well as 19th century daguerreotypes, these works open the dialogue to the colonial narrative preserved in botanical collections.

With the use of beeswax, question of environmental as subject remains relevant and alludes to larger concerns. Yntema has lectured on the global political regulations affecting farming, chemical usage the environment and the bees, with the goal to bring awareness to these issues, and promote grass-root change and sustainability.

Originally from New York, Yntema received her formal art training at Parson’s School of Design/The New School in NYC and is listed, alongside Jasper Johns and Ai Wei Wei, as one of the “New School Notables”. She received the 2018 Vendéenne Award for outstanding contribution to the encaustic arts. Having had solo and museums shows throughout the US and Europe, she is represented by A.I.R. Gallery in NYC and Cadogan Contemporary in London. Yntema’s works are in the collections of numerous museums and public collections in Europe and the United States, including the Museum of Modern Art and Metropolitan Museum of Art as well as numerous private collections.

Her publications include: A Sense of Place, Landscape and Identity, 2019 Cadogan Contemporary, The Temperature of Light, 2015, Kean University Press, The Quiet Landscape, 2015 & Still, 2009, Cadogan Contemporary and The Sky Above, Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh, 2022.

Please see: janiseyntema.com @janiseyntema