Born of Fire Giclee Print

Fumage artist, Dillon Sprague, is an artist based out of Sitka, Alaska. He primarily works with candle soot and is inspired by the natural beauty of the land and seas. 

Having moved from Colorado in 2022 to “beat the heat,” he and his partner Alicia made their way north by car and by boat to the island in Southeast Alaska where the town of Sitka lies between the mountains and the ocean on the 57th parallel. Sitka’s indigenous name is Sheet’ka and is the traditional homeland of the Lingít peoples. 

Finding a new place to call home and begin anew (and learning how difficult the life of a fishing boat deckhand could be) Dillon decided to lean into his artistic roots and create original works of art inspired by the natural beauty of the land and seas. Working with ink, paint, and candle soot (yes you read that correctly, candle soot)

Fumage is the name given to the art medium in which an artist uses a lit candle to deposit soot onto the surface of paper or panels as one would use a brush and paints to create a painting. Dillon then uses knife blades and other implements to carefully scrape away the soot to further refine the image. The organic and unpredictable nature of the candle smoke on the paper lends itself to naturally striking and beautiful images.