Based in Chattanooga, Janet Campbell Bradley creates abstract encaustic monotypes that balance the intuitive movement & bold gesture of ink with the quiet luminosity & structure of wax. Working with pigmented wax, heat, pressure and transfer processes, she builds layered compositions shaped by both intention and material unpredictability.
Growing up around engineers, she developed an early awareness of systems, precision and order. Those qualities later became central to her work as a metalsmith, a practice that trained her to value detail, control and a deep engagement with materials. After more than three decades working in jewelry and metal, however, she began to feel herself pushing against the limits of that precision and scale.
Seeking greater freedom and a more expansive way of working, she began exploring alternative media and print-based processes. The transition from jewelry to wall-sized work opened a new visual language of color, geometric form and intuitive movement. Encaustic allowed her to retain the material engagement she valued in metalsmithing while introducing translucency, depth and a greater degree of spontaneity.
Her current practice brings these histories together. Abstract calligraphic marks and internal rhythms move through luminous wax surfaces, creating a continuing interplay between structure and freedom, restraint and spontaneity.
