A very versatile, spontaneous medium, encaustic paints are applied molten to an absorbent, prepared surface. Also known as wax painting, encaustics can be remelted to create different effects, layered in opaque or translucent layers, modeled, textured, scraped, sculpted, polished, or combined with a variety of materials to create collage works. Unlike other paints, encaustic is never wet or dry — it goes from a liquid to a solid state and back again in seconds, allowing additional layers to be added immediately. Encaustic paints are moisture-proof, and they can be reworked indefinitely.