Winston Publishing

P.50 ~ PORTFOLIO Best of all, it took so long for Hagen to fine-tune her process, the art cannot be copied easily. Hagen says, "In this age of mass-production, I am feeling a calling to cre- ate one-of-a-kind works that cannot be mass-reproduced, computer gener- ated, or easily copied by a factory in China and sold on EBay." The place to purchase her "Wild Blue Yonder," from Glass Horses is The Russell Live Auction Saturday night. It has a catalog estimate of $10,000 to $11,500. The average size of each Glass Horses piece is 26-by-30 inches. "Each will weigh 100 pounds, and I have to be able to lift them," Hagen adds. The small- est of her Glass Horses are 12-by-12 inches and listed at $1,500 to $2,200. See them at all at Carolhagenstudios.com. BATIK: Echo Ukrainetz, Out West Art Show, Best Western Plus Heritage Inn, Room 115. Through a process of trial and error that began 25 years ago, Echo Ukrainetz broke away from her traditional work of painting portraits, wildlife and landscapes. The Montana native was drawn to produce art in a way that she knew she would never be exact. Echo says, "My purpose is to make each Batik a little bit better. … I think I am a frustrated oil painter and when I try techniques in Batik, I just can't seem to be per- fect." Her technique is so tedious, she only says she has "mastered" it, which is not the same at "perfected." Her method of manipulating wax and dye to cre- ate intricate batik paintings is laid out on her website (www.echoukrainetz. com). It describes Batik as "an artistic process of alternating applications of wax resist and colorful dyes on high quality cloth. The sequence of dye application, drying, and wax application results in imparting colors in target areas, and is repeated until the entire piece is covered with wax. A single batik can have well over 30 applications of dye and wax. If you look closely you will see crackle. This is achieved by bending and cracking the wax before the final application of black. The wax is them removed and the final piece is revealed." Echo uses 100 percent fine cotton cloth, pure bees wax and powdered permanent fabric dye. "I mix it until I like the color. But, I have no formula for the color," she adds. Keeping each piece about 2-by-3-feet ensures each detail is shown. She affixes each Batik to archival board and places under glass in a frame made by her artist husband Ron Ukrainetz. For some smaller pieces, she is able to use a final varnish and avoid using glass. Because she must use a professional printing process to make a copy of a Batik, she rarely does. She says, "I don't choose to do it; each one is an origi- nal. … I can't make any alike because wax is too unpredictable." Great Falls, Montana 805-291-9772 jessemartinez.zenfolio.com WEDDINGS PORTRAITS LANDSCAPES COMMERCIAL "Chief Long Feather" 24 x 18, Batik with Gold Leaf, Echo Ukrainetz

• Cover