Donna Frankland Works

Encaustic, meaning ‘to burn in or fuse’, is an ancient technique used throughout Greek, Roman and Egyptian cultures.  It combines beeswax, tree resin and assorted pigments to form the medium that is applied in a molten state and then fused to form a hardened layer.  A finished encaustic piece consists of many layers. 

Donna’s encaustic work leans towards the abstract and uses assorted mixed media such as dried pigments, oil paints and sticks, shellac, rust and sometimes found objects all fused with an assortment of blow torches, heat guns and irons.  The smell of the wax, the use of a flame and the fluidity of the medium touches many of the senses that few other mediums do.  

Donna began her career in the arts as an Architectural and Interior Designer. She holds a B.S. from the University of Tennessee and maintained a practice spanning almost 40 years in Jackson and Nashville TN. It was when Donna ventured into the world of beekeeping that her fascination with Encaustics began.  

Currently Donna shares her time between Jackson TN and St. George Island FL. She participates regularly in local and regional shows throughout the southeast. The Waterloo Arts Festival was a highlight in her artist life as she was chosen to be one of 80 artists out of 800 applicants to partake in the event. Her plan is to broaden her scope in the arts while ‘slowing down’ in the architecture part of her life.