A Study in Wax: Luminous Layers
with Melissa De Winter
1–5 June 2027
3 days tuition | Encaustic & Mixed Media | All Levels
Discover the extraordinary possibilities of painting with molten beeswax in an immersive three-day encaustic retreat with Melissa De Winter.
Layer, fuse, carve, embed, transfer and experiment as you explore this ancient medium and create richly textured, luminous works of your own.
Residential retreat at Greenhills Art Centre, Western Australian Wheatbelt
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3 Days Tuition
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Encaustic & Mixed Media
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Beginners to Experienced Artists
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Hands-on & Experimental
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Residential Retreat
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Maximum 12 Participants
A Study in Wax: Luminous Layers
There is something quite unlike any other medium about encaustic.
Molten beeswax can be layered, fused, carved, scraped, drawn into, embedded and combined with other materials, creating surfaces with remarkable depth, translucency and texture.
Over three immersive days, contemporary encaustic artist Melissa De Winter will introduce you to both the foundations and the creative possibilities of working with wax.
If you've never tried encaustic before, Melissa will take you through the materials, tools and processes you need to begin confidently and safely. If you already have experience, you'll have the opportunity to push the medium further, experiment with more advanced techniques and develop your own ideas.
Through demonstrations, guided experimentation and generous studio time, you'll explore the interaction between wax, pigment, drawing, imagery and mixed media while developing a finished piece that reflects your own creative direction.
This isn't about following a formula.
It's about discovering what happens when you layer, respond, experiment and allow the materials to become part of the creative process.
During the Retreat You'll Explore
Understanding Encaustic
Learn what encaustic is, how the medium behaves and how to work confidently with molten beeswax, pigments, heat and the specialist tools involved.
Layering & Fusing
Discover how successive layers of translucent wax can create extraordinary depth and atmosphere and learn how controlled fusing brings those layers together.
Texture & Surface
Carve, scrape, build and manipulate the wax surface to create marks, texture and visual interest.
Embedding Materials
Experiment with incorporating compatible materials into wax, opening up possibilities for collage, natural elements and mixed-media work.
Image Transfer
Explore ways of transferring imagery into encaustic and allowing photographs, drawings and found images to become part of a layered artwork.
Drawing & Mark Making
Work back into the wax using drawing and mark-making techniques, bringing another dimension to the surface.
Translucency & Light
Discover one of encaustic's most beautiful qualities — the way light moves through translucent layers of wax, creating a sense of luminosity and depth.
Experimental Techniques
Explore some of Melissa's more adventurous approaches, including shellac burning and combining ink and other media with wax.
Developing Your Own Work
Bring these processes together as you develop your own artwork with Melissa's individual guidance.
Your Retreat Schedule
Tuesday 1 June
Arrive at Greenhills from 4pm, settle into your room and meet Melissa and your fellow participants over dinner.
Wednesday 2 June
Encaustic — Day One
Begin with the foundations of encaustic: materials, tools, safe working practices, substrates, layering and fusing.
Melissa will demonstrate the fundamental techniques before you begin experimenting with wax and developing confidence with the medium.
Thursday 3 June
Encaustic — Day Two
Build on the foundations as you explore texture, carving, embedding, drawing, image transfer and mixed-media possibilities.
You'll have time to experiment, respond to the materials and begin developing your own work.
Friday 4 June
Encaustic — Day Three
Take your work further with more experimental techniques, including translucency, ink and shellac burning.
The final day provides generous supported studio time to bring together the techniques you've explored and develop your own finished work with Melissa's guidance.
Friday Evening — Dinner at Lake Kimberley Bar & Grill
On Friday evening, we'll head to nearby Lake Kimberley Bar & Grill at Whitegum Farm for a relaxed dinner together.
Friday dinner and drinks are not included in the retreat price and are paid directly by guests at the restaurant.
Saturday 5 June
Enjoy breakfast together before departure.
More Than Painting with Wax
Encaustic is an ancient process, but in Melissa's hands it becomes a remarkably contemporary medium.
Her own practice combines layers of beeswax with drawing, painting, natural materials and other media, creating atmospheric surfaces that seem to hold traces of landscape, memory and time.
Melissa's work is strongly influenced by the natural environment. After becoming an apiarist, she began exploring encaustic and discovered a medium that allowed her to bring together the different forms of art she had previously explored.
The works you see throughout this page show just how varied encaustic can be — from highly textured abstraction to haunting trees and layered landscapes.
There is room within the medium for control and accident, delicacy and boldness, representation and abstraction.
About Melissa De Winter
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Melissa De Winter is a contemporary Australian artist based in the Perth Hills whose work explores nature and our relationship with the natural world.
Originally from South Africa, Melissa experimented with a wide range of media including oil painting, photography, sketching, watercolour, alcohol ink and sculpture. Becoming an apiarist — or beekeeper — eventually led her to explore the ancient medium of encaustic painting.
Working with hot beeswax gave Melissa a way to bring those different creative interests together.
Her work now primarily uses encaustic, often incorporating drawing, painting, sculptural processes and natural or recycled materials. By building many thin layers of translucent wax, she creates works with depth, texture and an atmospheric quality.
Environmental concerns and the resilience and beauty of the Australian landscape are recurring influences in her practice.
Melissa works from her studio in Chidlow in the Perth Hills and regularly shares her knowledge of encaustic through workshops and demonstrations.
Follow Melissa
See more of Melissa's artwork, exhibitions and workshops:
Website | Instagram | Facebook
The Greenhills Experience — More than a Workshop
A residential retreat at Greenhills gives you something that is increasingly difficult to find — uninterrupted time to create.
With your accommodation and everyday details taken care of, and meals and refreshments provided at Greenhills apart from Friday dinner, you can immerse yourself in the studio, continue experimenting outside formal tuition hours and enjoy conversations with Melissa and a small group of fellow artists.
The large Greenhills studio is available throughout your stay, giving you the time and space to take what you've learned during demonstrations and explore it at your own pace.
And when the studio day is finished, there is nothing to pack into the car and nowhere you need to rush off to. Most evenings, dinner is waiting.
Your Retreat Includes:
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four nights private accommodation at Greenhills
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three full days tuition with Melissa De Winter
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all meals and refreshments at Greenhills, except Friday dinner
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morning and afternoon tea
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demonstrations and individual guidance
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generous access to the Greenhills studio
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evening time with fellow artists
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airport transfers where applicable.
On Friday evening, the group will dine at Lake Kimberley Bar & Grill at Whitegum Farm. Friday dinner and drinks are at guests' own expense.
Who Should Attend?
A Study in Wax: Luminous Layers is suitable for both beginners and artists with previous encaustic experience.
You don't need to have worked with wax before.
Melissa will introduce the foundations of the medium before progressively exploring more advanced and experimental techniques, allowing participants to work at a level appropriate to their own experience.
This retreat will particularly appeal to artists who would like to:
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discover encaustic without investing in all the equipment themselves
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explore a new and tactile medium
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introduce greater texture and depth into their work
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combine drawing, imagery and mixed media
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experiment rather than work towards a predetermined result
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expand an existing encaustic practice
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spend three uninterrupted days creating.
Materials
A complete materials list will be sent to participants closer to the retreat.
Your retreat
$1,880 per person — private room
Price includes GST.
Your retreat includes three full days tuition with Melissa, four nights private accommodation at Greenhills, all meals and refreshments at Greenhills except Friday dinner, and studio access throughout your stay.
A 20% deposit secures your place. The full balance is due eight weeks before the retreat. Monthly payment plans are available by prior arrangement.
Coming with a friend?
Save 10% each when sharing one of our limited twin rooms, subject to availability.
Twin Share — $1,692 per person
Independent Stay
For artists who live locally or prefer to arrange their own nearby accommodation, a limited number of Independent Stay places are available, subject to availability.
You'll still join us for tuition, meals and refreshments at Greenhills, studio access and the social side of the retreat — you simply arrange your own accommodation or bring an approved self-contained caravan or motorhome.
Independent Stay — $1,400 per person
Price includes GST.
Friday dinner and drinks at Lake Kimberley Bar & Grill are at guests' own expense for all accommodation options.
Discover What Happens When You Paint with Wax
Three days to experiment.
To layer.
To fuse.
To carve.
To embed.
To discover what lies beneath the surface.
Whether encaustic is completely new to you or a medium you already love, A Study in Wax: Luminous Layers offers the rare opportunity to immerse yourself in this extraordinary process with Melissa's guidance.
A Study in Wax: Luminous Layers
with Melissa De Winter
1–5 June 2027
Maximum 12 participants
Book Your Greenhills Retreat
Complete the form below and we'll send your deposit invoice to secure your place