Meet Eirene Archolekas | Artist, Writer, Teacher, Expressive Arts Facilitator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Eirene Archolekas and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Eirene, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I have always gravitated towards the healing power of the arts to deal with the angst of growing up in a dysfunctional family. It was only after my second divorce when I had a spiritual crisis, a dark night of the soul, to die to the parts of me that were no longer serving me that I embraced my true self–artist, healer, adventurer and expressive arts facilitator. I never knew I was such a talented artist and writer until I literally died and came back to life in a new way, sort of like the Phoenix. Since then, I have balanced my artistic practice of encaustic painting and encaustic photography with expressive arts workshops and retreats that heal mind, body, and soul. I believe EVERYONE is inherently creative and that tapping into that innate impulse brings joy and allows for connection to others. This is especially important post-pandemic and more urgent for adults more than children. We need this type of person-centered, community-building, creative joy-making social entrepreneurship post-COVID. I started my creative studio, Atelier Eirene, to live out the truth of my inner experience: self-knowledge, reflection, mindfulness, creativity reap joy, health, community revitalization, and peace. (In fact, Eirene is the Greek word for “peace.”). I believe in using art in the service of health. So you can say my business is an outgrowth of my own healing process. As I am a polymath (with ADDDDDD!) I cannot focus on just one type of art but use more than one artistic modality (music, movement, visual art, poetry, drama, journaling) to deepen the focus of the session and workshop. I follow the professional and ethical practices of the International Expressive Arts Therapy Association founded by Natalie and Carl Rogers informed by the person-centered foundation of “radical acceptance” and “positive regard.” We need to heal, individually and collectively in this post-modern, post-COVID era. This is why Atelier Eirene has come into existence–to service this need.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
What is “encaustic”? is a question I hear over and over. I did not know about it either, except that I loved the Fayyum Mummy portraits. It was while admiring the enchanting stare of these funerary portraits from the Hellenistic period in Egypt on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art that I first noticed the word “encaustic” on the museum label. This led me down a rabbit hole of research and then I resurfaced in Kingston, NY at R&F Studios and Paints, the largest supplier of encaustic media in the nation. After a series of workshops and a period of self-teaching, my creative life exploded. I love encaustic because of the sensuality of the medium–the smell, the texture, and because of its versatility. I believe that I manifested a natural proclivity to encaustic, an ancient Greek technique because it was in my DNA all along.

Encaustic is particularly endearing for me because it provides a direct connection to my ancestral past. It assists in uncovering the many fused layers of identity, aiding in the psychic archeology inherent in my work. To center my practice, I begin with inspiration from the natural world. It is not uncommon to discover many foraged natural materials including herbs, seeds, branches, bark, rocks, and earth in my compositions.
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My work is hard to categorize because I mix styles and media. It is idiosyncratic, ranging from impressionistic landscapes, abstract expressionistic renderings, feminist-themed collage, both decorative and abstract expressive floral motifs, even monoprints. I integrate photography and found materials in the wax , especially natural materials. My encaustics are characterized by stark and dramatic textures varied with smooth shiny finishes that serve to underscore the emotional variations of the composition. I extend encaustic as a layer in photography and alternative photography such as cyanotype.

Working with wax is not easy. It is a fluid medium that has a will of its own. But I find that when I dance with it, through the negotiation between its will and mine, the work is born.

I am trying to bring my love of encaustic to a larger audience. It requires a longer learning curve but the results are worth it.
In fact, I give art and nature retreats at my traditional atelier and stone cottage in the Cyclades, the beautiful white and blue ring of islands where my family is from.

Art helps me process the paradox, emotional malaise and contradiction in my personal life as well as the world around me. It acts as a symbolic manifestation of my personal landscapes. It helps me make sense of what I feel. Ultimately, it helps me heal. The act of creation becomes a triumph over despair, a tool for healing, and living proof that beauty can save the world.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I do not think I could have made it this far without the mercy of my Lord and Master Jesus Christ. My Eastern Orthodox faith has served as my rock, my spear, and my buckler. The healing practices of that ancient form of Christianity have grounded me in the most desperate times of my life. I also owe my success to my teachers and mentor, Tamara Knapp, and my tribe of fellow EXA practitioners (Shout out to the COVID cohort, y’all). The crowd of artists and writers who have stood as sentinels on life’s journey: Rumi, Gibran, Jung, Blake, Klimt, Woolf, CS Lewis. I am inspired by the idealists who have envisioned a better world and have acted to bring it about: St Maria of Paris, Eleanor Roosevelt, Dorothy Day, Rev. Martin Luther King, Mandela.

Website: www.ateliereirene.com

Instagram: @ateliereirene @EXARetreatsCyclades @eirenearcholekas

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eirene-archolekas-9b4874197/

Facebook: facebook.com/ateliereirene