Pastel Drawing – Meandering to the Sea

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Experimenting with Pastels

In previous posts, I’ve used stick pastels on top of monotypes – inspired by Edgar Degas’ beautiful treatments of dry media over printmaking inks. But until this piece, I’ve never worked with seemingly delicate little pastel pencils. The drawing above was an experiment to use cross hatching with sharpened pastel pencils over black paper. I had so much FUN with it, I couldn’t wait to end the day, and grab a glass of wine and my lap desk on the couch to continue. Have you tried this before? (Pastel pencils on paper, not the wine with art-making on a lap desk… well – okay, both!) ?

Using Pastels on Black Paper

The black paper and color-popping pastels reminds me of woodcuts and color relief prints. There’s a high-contrast graphic quality, like poster art, that I find so appealing. I have a few still life setups already photographed that might be candidates for more of this style of drawing. What do you think? Skip it and stay with watercolors, or meander a little bit and play with pastels this summer?

Inspiring Art links for you:

• When coming up with compelling titles for your art – unlikely resources might surprise you with great ideas. Check out this rose compendium, with lists visual as well as names of roses by type. You might find some good art titles based on colors in your work, and names of roses in the list.

• This isn’t about art, unless you get inspired by dreaming about beautiful beaches, and hosting your entire extended family in an amazing 8 bedroom vacation house. Click through the photos, and imagine hosting 26 of your favorite people for an artsy weekend getaway on the Florida shore. #afteryouwinthelottery

• Alan Bamberger writes about the importance of scheduling, planning and routine in your studio time and art-making. Even on your uninspired days, think of your work table as your factory, and more important for many, your laboratory. Show up. Experiment. Explore. Read about it here.

• Frances Bridges describes herself as a twentysomething writer and blogger in New York City, writing about everything she’s done wrong. In this Forbes article she shares tips as a creative person to stop the stream of negative self talk.

Weekend Plans in Los Angeles

If you’re in or near Los Angeles this weekend, stop by booth #20 at the Sierra Madre Art Fair and say hello. The weather is supposed to be in the 70’s and mostly sunny. I’ll have about 50 watercolors and original prints framed and ready for new homes in my booth. Stop in and take a little break from strolling through the park – I’ll have an extra chair for you.

Thanks for stopping by, and I’ll see you in the next post!

Belinda

P.S. You can subscribe to get each new post via email by signing up here.

P.P.S. If watercolor paper is a mystery to you, get this free watercolor paper primer. I wish I could have found this when I began painting, so I made one for you. The download is three pages, and it will kick start a series of 5 weekly emails full of watercolor tips, links and resources to help you get started.

Art Quote

You can resist the seductions of grandiosity, blame, and shame. You can support other people in their creative efforts, acknowledging the truth that there’s plenty of room for everyone. You can measure your worth by your dedication to your path, not by your successes or failures. You can battle your demons (through therapy, recovery, prayer, or humility) instead of battling your gifts – in part by realizing that your demons were never the ones doing the work, anyhow. You can believe that you are neither a slave to inspiration nor its master, but something far more interesting – its partner – and that the two of you are working together toward something intriguing and worthwhile. You can live a long life, making and doing really cool things the entire time. You might earn a living with your pursuits or you might not, but you can recognize that this is not really the point. And at the end of your days, you can thank creativity for having blessed you with a charmed, interesting, passionate existence.

Elizabeth Gilbert

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