The Beautiful Parakeet

3 1/8" x 4 7/8" - Pastel Pencil on Wallis Sanded Paper

I am working on some more complicated

paintings right now, and cannot be a "painter"

as such, every day. As everyone knows who

uses them, we paint when we use pastels.

I am very fond of this little drawing. I'm thinking

of going to the pet store - I asked them if I

could photograph their birds and they said

"yes" - to get some more material.

Nautilus

Go Here to Bid

Pastel on White Archival paper, 6" x 8"

I did this drawing today in my "veils" pastel technique, using

many thin "glazes" of pastel powder over a charcoal drawing.

It is hard to see in the photograph the beautiful surface of the

drawing, particularly the different textures - the difference

between the soft, velvety backgroundm the grainy table,

and the smooth and shiny shell. This is a very fun technique

and is one that I teach in my class and in workshops.

Thanks for visiting today.

Pastel Drawing of a Tree after one in a Medieval Painting

NFS
This is an odd reproduction of this picture. It is actually much

more colorful than this. Perhaps it is because I scanned it.

The paper I drew it on was Sennelier gray pastel paper, which

had quite a heavy texture - this is hardly noticeable in real

life. Anyway, the blues don't come through as they should.

This is a tree that has always caught my attention in a small

painting in the Medieval to Early Renaissance section in the

National Gallery in Washington, which I am lucky to say is

only about twenty minutes from where I live. Unfortunately,

I never wrote down the name of the artist, but I do remember

that it is a depiction of the devil (with very large, nasty horns,

but dressed for some unexplained reason, like a Franciscan)

tempting Christ in the wilderness. An odd picture, but the

tree is sublime.

Thanks for visitng today.

PS - I fell off of my bicycle and injured both of my arms, so

it will be a few more days before we see anything really

NEW here. Please have patience.

Ariadne, after Greek, c. 300 BC

Pastel and Carbon Pencil on 18" x 24"archival White Paper,

image 11" square $85.00 Go Here

This is another "veils of color" drawing, done with mostly

Nupastels, vine charcoal, and a carbon pencil. I could do these

drawings/paintings forever.

It is interesting. Many people consider pastels drawings. But,

yesterday, at the end of a class I teach at the Art League School

in Alexandria, Virginia, called "Painterly Pastel", we had a critique

and everyone put their work up on the wall.

I asked the question, "if you were to just walk in here and look at

these for the first time, would you call these "drawings", or,

"paintings". Every one of them said "paintings". And, I think that

is true. It is because of the power of color, even when there

are a lot of lines involved, as in the drawing above. One is drawn

in by the color. Even in a simplistic color scheme such as this.

Thanks for visiting today.

Priscilla

Venus #1

Pastel and Carbon Pencil on White Paper

8" x 9 3/4" SOLD

I don't know why, but I have always been fascinated

by classical sculptures from ancient Greece and Rome.

I have spent a great deal of time doing drawings of

them in many different media. My favorite is pastel,

however, which I usually do on acid-free sketch-weight

paper, using veils of color, vine charcoal, carbon pencil,

and several different types of fixative.

I start out with a layer of Nupastel (hard) in some color that

I like, and draw into that with a very skinny piece of vine

charcoal. The great thing is that if you don't like what you

draw, you can just keep covering it up with more pastel

until you get an image that you think you can work with.

At that point I will usually spray it with Workable Fixative.

Not too much, but just enough to make changes if I want.

Then I start adding more colors, more drawing, more vine

charcoal. I use the carbon pencil (Conte), because it doesn't

smear like charcoal pencil does.

After awhile, I will deliberately spray this with Crystal Clear

or Matte Finish, or other Krylon Fixative (outside of course!!), or

even Sennelier Fixatif Latour, which, being made from a citrus

base, I can spray right in front of my face, but it has a tendancy

to wrinkle the paper, as it has some water in it, I think (it can also

deposit some spots, but this can be a very happy accident sometimes!).

At this point I am deliberately trying to make the picture darker.

Then I continue to work on it with the same materials, until I have gotten

to a place where I am happy with it.

Next to my post is a small example of a larger drawing that I was very happy

with that is not for sale, because it is part of my private collection.

Thank you for viewing my work today.

Pink Torso Fragment Pastel/Charcoal Drawing

Pastel and Charcoal on Archival White
Drawing Paper, 18" x 24"

I have to admit it, I did not do this
drawing today. I did it a few months
ago. But I had to teach today, and I did
not have a chance to paint.

This was done from a black and white
photograph of a Greek fragment. It
was probably a Venus. But it certainly
was beautiful - and it was SO inspiring.
I love painting....but I have to say, this.
to me, is another form of painting.

I guess everyone acknowledges that pastel
is a form of painting. I teach this technique
at the Art League School in Alexandria, VA.
We use veils of color, starting out by drawing
into a layer of pastel color with the skinniest vine
charcoal until we get an image we like. Then,
we spray every layer except the last one, using
veils and veils of color. It is really fun, and can
produce ethereal or powerful results, depending
on the values and colors you use, and also depending
on what you do with your fixative.

I love this drawing.