NPS President's Award

I'm happy to report that my painting "Retired" won the President's Award (1st Place) in the Northwest Pastel Society's 24th International Open Exhibition!  The reception was very well attended, and the show is very impressive.  I was really looking forward to meeting Duane Wakeham, the juror, but unfortunately he was sick and unable to attend.  I was able to meet some other artists whose work I particularly like, though, so overall it was quite a fun afternoon.

If you aren't local, but want to see the exhibit, go to the American Art Company's web site.  You'll see the show under "Current Exhibits."  The gallery did a great job hanging the show, so if you are able to see it in person, do try.  It is so much more impressive in person than online.

"Retired"

19.5 x 27.5"

Also, I'll be doing a pastel demo for the Rainier League of Arts on Tuesday, November 16, at 7:00 pm.  The meeting will be held at the Pierce County Library Processing and Administrative Center, 3005 112th Street East, Tacoma, WA 98446.  All are welcome to attend.  Hope to see you there!

Trying Pan Pastels

To tell you the truth, I've never been tempted to buy Pan Pastels.  Part of what I like about soft pastels is a tactile thing - being able to hold them and blend with my hand, painting with nothing between me and the paint.  I didn't think I would like Pan Pastels (if you don't know what Pan Pastels are, click here to find out).  However, since I recently received them for free (my award for the Pastels USA show) I took the opportunity to experiment with them.

I started with a sheet of Pastelmat paper.  This support seems perfect for the Pans.  There were lots of tools included, so I pulled out a large oval sponge and spread green all over the paper.  It was awesome!  It took just a few minutes and didn't require the blending that my other pastels would have needed.  Using the other tools took a bit of getting used to, and was a bit awkward for me.  Sometimes I liked the results, sometimes not.  Of course, I had to supplement colors from my existing pastel stock.  I found I could use the tools with softer pastels (like Terry Ludwigs) in the same manner as the Pans, but it didn't work with my Mount Visions.  However, the tools blended the Mount Visions just fine on the paper.

Turns out, I liked the Pans much more than I thought I would.  I particularly liked being able to cover a large area so quickly and easily.  I wouldn't want to use them exclusively, but I think they are a nice addition to my existing stock of pastels.

"Retired"

19.5" x 27.5"

Soft Pastel on Pastelmat

Figurative Painting in Soft Pastel

This is something I started last month.  It's one of those paintings that requires thousands of decisions (well, they all do, but this one seemed to require more than usual).  Before I start painting something this labor intensive, I work out the major decisions in Photoshop; move things around, take things out, change colors, etc.  As I painted this, I found myself wishing I'd considered a few more options.  I'll have to try out those ideas on another painting, though, because I'm ready to call this one finished.

"Takeout"

24" x 18"

Soft Pastel on Pastelmat

Pastels USA Award

I had two paintings accepted into Pastels USA, the 24th annual international open exhibition for the Pastel Society of the West Coast.  The exhibit is being held at the Art Museum of Los Gatos from June 3 to July 9, 2010, and was juried by Richard McKinley.

I found out this morning that my painting "Old Friend" received the Colorfin LCC award!

"Old Friend"

12" x 19.5"

Soft Pastel on Pastelmat

See more of my work:

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Guitar Player

I've been working fairly small for quite a while, so I decided to paint something big.  I totally enjoyed painting this one.

"Acoustic"

27.5" x 19.5"

Soft Pastel on Pastelmat

Sushi Chef - Painting on Pastelmat with WIP pics

Here is my second painting on Pastelmat.  It's still trial and error for me at this point, but I'm getting used to the paper, and I like it very much.

Sushi Chef

19.5" x 15.5"

Soft Pastel on Pastelmat

People keep asking me for WIPs, so I tried to remember to take some pictures along the way so I could show you my process.


First, I started out with a grid.  I laugh at myself when I try to grid, because I can never get the grid even, or to accurately match the reference photo grid.  And even if I had everything accurate, I don't have the patience to copy the boxes exactly.  So for me, a grid is more of a tool I use for the initial placement of the image, and then I draw the picture from the computer monitor.  I also correct and redraw as necessary when I'm painting.


For the grid, I took a few drawing pencils and made small marks on the paper.  Then I erased the marks with a kneaded eraser.  I used the pencil that erased the best.  I drew the painting with a pastel pencil, and lost parts of my drawing when the pastel pencil rubbed off, so next time I'm just going to use the drawing pencil. 


A note about pastel removal:  A kneaded eraser pulls up pastel very nicely on this paper, particularly if you're not trying to pull up a lot.  I found Q-tips effective when I wanted to remove a lot of pastel (meaning many layers).  A soft paintbrush is also effective.  I actually tried the vacuum, and was surprised at how ineffective it was (and my vacuum has a lot of suction!).


Here is my initial drawing:

I started painting the hat and face first.

Then the hair and shirt.

Then I finished the shirt and started the background.

Next I have a gap in the photos (sorry).  When I got to the hands, I realized you might like to see how I paint skin (I used the same method for the face, just didn't get pics of it), and thought to get a photo.  First, I redrew the hands with a pastel pencil (the drawing had faded by the time I was ready to paint the hands).  Next, I painted the local color of the skin, using probably six different pastel colors. 

Next, I blended that, then applied more pastel in the same manner, then blended again.  After that, I touched up with pastels and pastel pencils to define the hands a bit better (sorry, I got so into my painting I forgot to take pics!).

  

After that, I made corrections, removed things that weren't necessary, etc.  Here's the finished painting once again.

I am really getting to like the Pastelmat.  I like the fact that it is so soft, but I can get a nice sharp line on it.  It takes a lot of pastel, though not nearly as much as suede matboard.  This paper will probably replace La Carte for me.  I get similar results, but a bit better coverage, and blending is much easier on the fingertips.  As far as dust goes, I'd say I get less dust than La Carte, but much more than suede matboard.  I would use this paper for anything I would normally use La Carte for, and probably suede matboard and velour paper as well, with the exception of animals.  Once I get used to the paper, I may try fur again and reevaluate.


I hope this was interesting for you, despite the gaps in my photos!

Painting on Pastelmat

This is my first attempt painting on a new paper called Pastelmat.  Since I often paint animals, I thought I’d first test how suitable the paper is for fur.  I used my dog as the subject.  My usual method of painting fur didn’t work on this paper, so unless I figure out a way to get the results I want, I won’t be using this paper for animals in the future.  I can see great possibilities with other subjects, though.

"Old Friend"
12” x 19.5”

Soft Pastel on Pastelmat

Pastelmat is an amazing surface.  It is so smooth, you wouldn’t expect it to grab onto the pastel, but that’s exactly what it does.  I’m looking forward to experimenting with different subjects and discovering what I can do with it.