Wick+Wax

Telling Life's Stories Through Wax
Inspired by People Not Cash

K I N E S I C S
an exhibition of wax sculptures presented by WickandWax
December 10 - 14, 2024


photo courtesy Ibu Tsubo "The Lost Art of Conversation" Recycled Wax from 96 Tears NYC	The Artists	photo courtesy Ibu Tsubo "Have Gun Will Travel" Recycled Wax 96 Tears NYC

"You are the melting men
   You are your situation…
   So, melt!
   My lover, melt!" — Siouxsie and the Banshees

I would never dream of melting one of Aaysha’s candles. They are too beautiful a response to humanity's frequently splendid but often troubling situations to imagine them disappearing.

In "Kinesics" [think 'gestures as nonverbal communication'], Aaysha's candles serve the opposite function of disappearance: their sculpted, life-sized wax hands make gestures and clutch objects that re-materialize and make vivid an incredible variety of human experiences. We see one hand making a hippie peace sign and then one pointing a gun upwards. Would you like a slice of melon? — a friendly hand seems to offer. Another gives you the middle-finger! The works here are all done in monochromatic white wax which allows one to approach their diverse subjects with a certain equilibrium and a certain peace.

The night I attended "Kinesics," the infamous and incredible drag queen Mariah Balenciaga was performing in conjunction with the show. This was an inspired choice not just because Mariah Balenciaga herself is an inspiration but because her selection (and other performers on other nights) created an intriguing artistic conversation with the candles. For me, the best drag is a glamorous and somehow necessary transformation of body and spirit. Or, if you will, drag can be a powerful recycling of the body and its lived situations that has the power to illuminate the ineffable in all of us. Aaysha's candles, made from recycled bar wax (which theoretically could be melted and transformed yet again) also powerfully illuminate the ineffable inside us. And they do it with wicks, as of yet, unlit.

- Wells Pollock

Say It / Don't Spray It & Melted Dreams (2023)

"You call this art?!" There is always this debate, crafts vs art. The pieces created for this viewing are about diving into that age-old question, what is considered art.


Say It / Don't Spray It (2023) Recycled Wax	Aaysha Amour aka WickandWax	Melted Dreams (2023) Recycled Wax

The Vagina Candle: Ice Cream Dreams (2021)

Rosebud. Happy Valley. Snatch. The world has an enduringly complicated relationship with the vagina, one filled with much debate. Vilified by religions as a gateway to sin due to its perceived mysterious, almost supernatural powers, yet imbued with wonder and awe as human life literally springs forth from it, the vagina possesses a power that is fearsome, revered, intriguing and beguiling. To celebrate the beauty and mystique of the powerful female sex, Wick+Wax presents the Vagina Candle. Bejeweled and nestling on top of a tantalizing sugar cone, this candle encapsulates all the things that make the vagina so alluring. Available in three "flavors": Cream of White Widow; Purple Paradise; Ice Cream Candy Mimosas, this art piece speaks to the power of womanhood, the foundation of all things feminine, the contradictions, and all the nuances in between. The vagina—Mother of all Souls—is powerful, precious, life-giving, fun and…of course, delicious. The Wick+Wax Vagina Candle pays tribute to the complex beauty of the female sex. - June Joseph


Artwork by @LincolnRb Limited Run	@We Love Shag 2021-2022	Ice Cream Dreams




(2018)	(2018)

(2018)


Starting 2018 with a bang! Last month we are proud to have participated as a brand in the Agenda Capsule Trade Show NYC at Community54's cash and carry exhibition booth.	The experience was everything all the heads in the industry hype up and brag about. Top brand booths, giveaways, unique cultural collectors, you name it! Big shout out 2 the Communtiy54 family for sharing such an amazing experience with us.

It's official: we 'out here! WickandWax and Spunizm, aka BK DAZED, at Artists and Fleas Williamsburg (2017)! Where candles and clothes connect!	"It's not about the destination but the journey" Nothing could better describe WickandWax finally featuring our candles in a brick & mortar establishment in Chicago. I am ecstatic to have Chicago Truborn Gallery & Boutique carrying our hand-crafted mini spray paint CANdles (2017). Chicago Truborn is a "community based 'anti' gallery/art coalition dedicated to supporting all mediums of artistic creation with emphasis on street/urban/outsider art." Clearly an ideal fit for WickandWax.

Beginning summer 2016, we started adding in discarded wax from restaurants in NYC. Instead of throwing it out, I take what's left, melt the wax down and craft lovely candles. From what was once potentially garbage, UPCYCLE! Keeping it granola def about that life! Create, Light, Burn!

About Wick+Wax: I have been a crafter of candles and molds for over a decade. Based in New York, I craft for the people. Using candles as a medium not only to create olfactive bliss, but also to use as voice of expression. We all have a story we tell, ours is through the craft of candle making. Reach me at any of the below:

Please read all WARNING LABELS and instructions before lighting any candle and NEVER leave a candle burning unattended.