Alicia Forestall-Boehm

"Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood and probably themselves will not be realized. Make big plans; aim high in hope and work." — Daniel Burnham (1846-1912) Architect Daniel Burnham, whom some consider the inventor of urban planning, offered a vision of what he believed a civilized city should look like at a time of urban disorder. He believed that a city could be both beautiful and efficient.   His work sought to merge things often thought of as opposite such as business with art and the practical with the ideal. Burnham’s influence is strongly felt in Chicago as well as across America. My newest piece, Make No Little Pl ans began as a simple wooden cube. Any of you who are familiar with my work will find this shape to be of no surprise! The square shape encourages balance and underscores the potential dichotomy in everything.    It symbolizes a prolonged state of presence and is a dependable and grounded structure.     ...

 I recently attended a Silkscreen and Encaustic workshop with artist Jeff Hirst at the LaGrange Art League.   This has been my summer of workshops.   Earlier this year I attended an Encaustic and Wax Resist workshop given by artist Kim Bernard and I plan on taking Linda Womack’s on-line workshop Surface Design with Pastels, Inks and Mixed Media , later this fall.   Jeff’s workshop explored the unique process of screen printing oil paint and pigment sticks into and onto encaustic surfaces.   It was my hope that by learning this innovative technique, I could print on the encaustic-coated fibers used in my 3D sculptures adding an additional level of interest to their textural surfaces.   This workshop was funded in entirety through a Chicago Community Arts Assistance Program (CAAP) Grant.   Many thanks to the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events and to the following panelists who approved my grant application: Barry Tinsley, Pau...

Tendency of Thought (18"x18", encaustic, cheesecloth) A number of months ago I looked at a call that I wanted to apply to and saw that it specified “Only 2D” submissions. Now given that I have focused on 3D work over the last year or so, I thought this was a nice little challenge. Challenges are a good thing. They encourage us to experiment and they test our willingness to step out of our comfort zone. Sometimes these challenges emerge as mere questions; how can I hang this sculpture on the wall, how can I use this material differently, how can I convey this idea? A good number of these deliberations remain ‘on the back burner’, so to speak, waiting for that spark of inspiration. Sometimes that spark happens right away. I see something new that hints at an answer, or look at the problem in a whole new way. Sometimes it’s just that infamous 'happy accident'. With this submission challenge, I knew that I wanted to incorporate both encaustic and cheesecloth...

Approximately a year ago I commissioned Rodney Thompson to make me custom designed cradled panels with recessed pockets. It was my plan to fill these pockets with delicate square boxes made of encaustic paint and cheesecloth. While creating these petite cubes using no wire supports was a challenge that I happily took on, my attention was diverted to the development of my encaustic and fiber vessel and sculpture pieces. Time and time again I admired these beautiful panels knowing that I would return to them and I am happy to announce that the first of these box assemblages, Moving Day, has been selected for inclusion in the exhibit Hot Wax in the City at the Morpho Gallery in Chicago. Whether working in 2D or 3D, I find myself returning to the geometry of the square. I believe that it not only underscores the potential duality in everything, it encourages balance. It symbolizes a prolonged state of presence, a dependable and grounded structure. By creating these delicat...

The idea of an artist’s process has always fascinated me. Everyone thinks and works in a way unique to them. The steps an artist takes that lead to a finished painting is incredibly interesting and telling. Every artist can paint a line on a canvas but none of these lines will look the same and it is who they are and what they bring to the making of that line that makes each artist and each painting unique. In the 1960’s Roy Lichtenstein brought his unique voice to the art world. His hard-edged precise compositions have been said to have defined the pop art movement. This summer the Art Institute of Chicago has brought together the largest group of Roy Lichtenstein’s work, including drawings, paintings and sculptures, to show the scope of his process and interests in the exhibition Roy Lichtenstein: A Retrospective. I was most taken by the portion of the exhibition entitled Works on Paper. Here a collection of preliminary drawings that were made as precursors to finished p...

I always find it to be wonderfully thought-provoking to learn the whats, the whys and the hows about a particular piece or about a body of work. Understanding an artist’s process can be incredibly fascinating and telling. I am a very process oriented artist and this is evident in many of my series including my encaustic Urban Windows series, my encaustic tile Tesserae series and most recently in my encaustic and fiber vessels and sculptures. Last month I began a new encaustic and fiber sculpture and I thought that it might be interesting to document the making of this new piece. Window no. 34 (6.75"x6.75",encaustic) Tesserae X (18"x18", encaustic tiles) Since I made my first encaustic and fiber Vessel in 2011, each work was created in a purely intuitive manner. As my designs became larger and more complex I began to create models. Coming Together began as a drawing and from this drawing I made a paper model. By creating this model I was...