Artist Barb Hranilovich is the most outrageously talented and skilled person I have ever known. If you live in the Lansing area, chances are good that you’ve seen her work on a billboard or poster, in an art gallery, or even in a Biggby coffee shop. (If you don’t live in Lansing, chances are still good that you’ve seen her illustrations in books or magazines.) Once you start to recognize her work, you also begin to get a good idea of her generosity to the community as you spot her illustrations on invitations and posters and her original pieces at silent auctions for local causes.

She is a prolific artist who works in a variety of media, and she frequently shares her skills and knowledge in classes and workshops. One of those workshops is an encaustic class she holds semi-regularly in her home studio. Honestly, it is worth participating just to see her at work, but you also get to learn from her, use her materials, and make your own encaustic piece. If you’ve been curious about the medium but didn’t want to invest in the materials, or if you want to schedule a few hours just to enjoy being creative, this workshop is for you.

Class begins with a history of encaustic, a beeswax and resin mix that has been used to paint for thousands of years. Then on to the fun stuff: Barb demonstrates techniques you can use to paint with vibrant pigment, add luscious textures, and incorporate collage into your work. (Somehow she can take a photocopy and some tissue paper and create something that belongs in a gallery.) She is very knowledgeable and it would probably take days for her to show you everything she has learned, but you get a solid overview.

Following her demo, you are free to make your own pieces. Barb has all the tools you could ever need — encaustic medium, pigment, brushes, tools, papers, stamps, and all sorts of odds and ends to create texture and shapes. You start with a smallish square of birch board to learn and practice on, then move on to a larger finished piece. Barb works alongside the attendees, collaborating and offering her expertise throughout the class. At the end of the day, you’ll have your very own artwork to take home.

Encaustic is a lot of fun to work with. Painting with hot wax that “freezes” at room temperature means there isn’t much time to hesitate or second-guess yourself, which is very freeing. But, if you don’t like any part of it, you can melt it or scrape it off and start again. Or you can continue to build on top of it — layering pigments and clear encaustic “medium” lets you create impressive depth.

It’s a lot of fun to see what your classmates make. You all start with the same materials, but everyone’s work is so different and interesting.

Classes are small and fill up fast. The next class will be held in July, but Barb also offers a variety of other workshops and parties that you can schedule for yourself or with a group of your friends.