Randy L Purcell
Maryville, TN
Randy's work is the result of a unique encaustic process where he transfers ink from magazines onto a thin layer of beeswax (Encaustic medium).
MessageRandy L Purcell (b. 1968, Paducah, KY)
Randy L Purcell enlisted in the United States Army Reserve directly out of high school, serving six years, including deployment during Desert Storm. After exploring several vocations in the years that followed, he ultimately found his path as a creative.
He enrolled at Middle Tennessee State University in 2005 and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting in 2009. It was there where he developed his signature encaustic process: transferring magazine ink directly onto beeswax to create intricate, mosaic-like compositions.
Purcell’s work explores memory and perception through the interplay of distance and detail. From afar, his paintings resemble faded photographs; up close, they reveal carefully assembled fragments of text and imagery. Built piece by piece, each surface reflects themes of structure, storytelling, and accumulated experience.
His work has been exhibited in galleries and public venues including Nashville International Airport (BNA), the Grand Rapids Public Museum, and Middle Tennessee State University. He has participated in major exhibitions such as ArtPrize and ArtFields and has presented a solo exhibition in Canada. Public art commissions include a Metro Arts Nashville bike rack design and murals for Nashville’s ARTober celebration and MTSU’s Veteran Center.
Beyond his personal practice, Randy is a dedicated advocate for the arts. He co-founded the Nashville Collage Collective and the collaborative Four Artist TN and has served on the boards of L’Evate, Turnip Green Creative Reuse, and NUMBER: Inc. Magazine. Passionate about sharing his craft, he teaches encaustic art through workshops, in-class demonstrations, and online courses, inspiring others to explore the rich possibilities of mixed media and image transfer.
Randy is represented by The District Gallery in Knoxville, TN, The Copper Fox Gallery in Leiper’s Fork, TN, and KORE Gallery in Louisville, KY. For further information, visit his website, social media, and YouTube channel. He resides in East Tennessee.
Statement
Memory is an amazing thing. It’s the “lost and found” of our lives. Exploring that repository is an intrinsic part of my intention…but this is more. Without doubt, each painting is a reflection on things I’ve encountered in my life. But my artwork also includes my sense of wonder. I’ve come to realize that it’s the little things that can create and trigger memories. Consequently, I allow an influence from one moment of my life to lead me to the next, which allows me to follow a seemingly random, and endless, path of experiences. As a result, my paintings each represent chapters in the book that is my life.
The process of cutting and transferring ink from magazine paper onto beeswax is a tedious technique. However, the work is peaceful and silent, and it allows me space for introspection. Just like memories, some of the transferred imagery can represent various facets and moments of my life, all things that have brought me to the present. This medium presents these subjects as well as we may remember them. Do we ever recall one thing without being reminded of others?
I begin each piece by going through my photos, taking time to reflect on my experiences and on past works. Of course, I paint a lot of bees because they are responsible for the medium I use. I like to raise awareness of their importance to our environment, but most of my subjects have a connection with things I’ve encountered. I hope to draw you in with familiar subjects—but hold your attention with an overwhelming array of textures and imagery!
All images copyright Randy L Purcell
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