Extract from Thea's Obituary:
Thea Haubrich, 60, passed away peacefully on Wednesday September 25, 2013 in Penticton after a long courageous battle following a stroke. Thea was born in Rotterdam, Netherlands and she and her husband Peter left Holland in 1980. She lived in Austria (where her son Maarten was born), Germany, Japan, Germany again and in Penticton British Columbia, Canada – “A place to stay forever!”
She did not follow a very artistic path until her late 40's (she called it her "Dormant Phase"...), but she acquired all kinds of skills, which would suit her later in her career. Around 1996 she was introduced to Encaustic. It was the "European way", mainly using the painting iron on non-absorbent painting cards. She recognized a huge potential in sharing this ancient art form (which is easy to learn with fantastic results) while interacting with people at the same time.
As Thea and her husband decided to immigrate to Canada in 2004 she saw her calling as promoting Encaustic, giving workshops and networking to share as much knowledge as possible. People commented that she had a natural talent for connecting. She was not only an artist, but a facilitator with a passion for creating with beeswax. She was member of several local Arts Councils, past Board member of the International Encaustic Artists and a proud RipOff Artist.
In 2008 she was awarded active status with the Federation of Canadian Artists, and several of her Encaustic pieces have won prizes and/or sold in their juried shows. In 2013 Thea received the SOWINS award for enriching our community through her talents and commitment to visual arts. |