Inspirational
Gallery

To inspire you and show you what is possible with this delightful medium, I’ve included this inspirational gallery. These paintings demonstrate some of the many different styles that can be achieved with pastels, as you’ll see in the works of Greg Biolchini, Richard McKinley, Deborah Christensen Secor, Sam Goodsell, Desmond O’Hagan and Deborah Bays. After looking at these beautiful paintings, I know you’ll be eager to turn the page and start learning how to use the medium yourself.

Man From Mt. Vision
24" × 18" (61cm × 46cm) by Greg Biolchini

Merging Pastels and a Wet Medium
GREG BIOLCHINI

I painted this portrait to near completion in about four hours as a demonstration in a crowded booth for the Mount Vision Pastel Company. The painting was done on a pumice ground I prepared myself on a two-ply rag mat board, as described on control texture with a homemade surface. First, I quickly drew in the big shapes directly onto the white pumice board with Mount Vision Soft Pastels. I then brushed a generous amount of water onto the pastel, turning the dry pastel into a drippy wet wash. When it dried, I worked back over the loose wash, adding more dry pastel and water, merging the wet and dry pastels together as I redrew and refined the portrait. A convincing likeness emerged from accurate drawing and re-drawing as this portrait progressed. The reference for this painting was a photograph I took of this gentleman.

Waters Edge
12" × 17" (30cm × 43cm) by Richard McKinley

Utilizing an Oil Stain Underpainting
RICHARD MCKINLEY

Waters Edge was painted in the studio, working from sketches and a small oil painting done en plein air, which is my preferred method of studio painting. (See ˝Using Color Studies as a Reference˝.)

To clarify the concept, I started by making a few thumbnail sketches, and then drew the composition on a piece of mounted museum grade Wallis paper with a 2b pencil. Next, I applied an oil stain underpainting (see underpainting with an oil stain). The underpainting created a translucent wash of color that guided the choices of pastel to be applied. The first strokes of pastel were applied in the main area of interest. The darkest and lightest masses were indicated, so that a general value relationship would exist before any surrounding area was completed. I initially worked with thin applications of pastel so more pigment could be added as the painting progressed.

Midway through the painting I allowed a lot of the underpainting to show through the foreground grasses, hoping this would be enough to create the essence of what was there without distracting from the main area of interest. After evaluation it became clear that due to the strong use of color, and contrast in the area of interest, more definition would be required in the foreground to anchor it and allow for the proper depth. The final half of the painting was the gradual resolving of the foreground and a few minor intensifications of color or value in surrounding areas.

Blazing Complements
11" × 17" (28cm × 43cm) by Deborah Christensen Secor

Using a High Contrast in Values and Complementary Colors
DEBORAH CHRISTENSEN SECOR

The key to the success of Blazing Complements is the high contrast in values, as well as the complementary orange and blue theme.

To begin the painting, I chose a medium green-gray tone to apply over the entire surface of the white Wallis paper. I covered the paper with a loose layer of pastel using the flat side of the stick, and then used a foam house-painting brush to vigorously scrub the pigment into the grain of the paper. Finally, I used the brush to thoroughly brush away any excess dust.

This medium value and functionally neutral color works to enhance both warm and cool colors, supplying a slightly cool cast beneath the blazing orange on the sunlit side of the adobe buildings and, in contrast, harmonizing the blue shadows on the pavement with a faintly warmer color underneath. This unifies the entire color scheme of the painting. When I’m able to find a color such as this green-gray that functions as a bridge color, working in contrast to both the warm and cool colors in my painting, I prefer to tone the entire piece of paper, rather than doing a complementary underpainting, such as that shown on beginning with an underpainting. The solid tone allows me to do a fairly detailed drawing in extra soft thin vine charcoal, similar to that shown on underpainting of complementary colors. The drawing gives me a chance to sort out where the major compositional elements lie, in order to maintain a careful balance of the light and dark masses.

Waiting
54" × 28 ½" (137cm × 72cm) by Sam Goodsell

From Charcoal Sketch to Color Layering
SAM GOODSELL

I liked the way the model leaned in this composition. It was important to get the gesture right in the early stages of the drawing. Sketching with soft vine charcoal, my first sketch had her too straight up and down, so I rubbed out the sketch and did it again. As in the demonstration beginning on painting a model in your studio, I then used the charcoal to block in the large masses of dark, and pulled out light shapes with a chamois. In this early stage it’s a very angular drawing, showing the planes, and an approximation of light and shadow shapes without any details.

Once that’s complete, I begin blocking in with the base colors or dominant colors right over the charcoal, paying attention to the values I’ve already established. The base color in the shirt, for example, is a blue. As the painting develops, I layer over more subtle distinctions of color, such as blue-violet, blue-gray, and even umbers. Painting in natural north light gives everything a little bit of a blue-gray cast, but basically I respond to the colors I see and paint them.

From the very beginning of the drawing and throughout the painting, I squint to eliminate insignificant details and see basic shapes, light and shadow. That keeps me from putting in detail that is not necessary for the painting, allowing me to emphasize what is important and let go of what is not important.

Late Morning, St. Mark's Coffee House
11" × 17" (28cm × 43cm) by Desmond O'Hagan

Varying the Direction and Pressure of Pastel Strokes
DESMOND O'HAGAN

While painting Late Morning, St. Mark’s Coffee House, it was crucial to identify the important shapes within the composition. The shapes that reflect the sunlight streaming through the open windows are where I want the viewer’s eyes to go first. I first composed the painting by drawing the large, darker shape in an abstract pattern. This was the first step in establishing the contrast in lights and darks that would make the sunlit areas stand out in the end. Using the sides of the pastel, much like the width of a large brush, I create the dark shapes by varying the direction of the stroke as well as the pressure on the pastel (see using smooth paper for texture for another example). This technique gives the shapes character and visual texture and avoids creating a monotonous pattern. Varying the pressure on the pastel can create a nice visual texture as opposed to applying several layers of physical texture that run the risk of becoming muddy. Keeping those early shapes dark and subdued helped give the lighter, brighter colors more strength later. After painting in the middle values, I concentrated on the sunlit areas. I used combinations of orange, yellow, pink, and light blue to create the feeling of a warm, sunlit room. Using the edge of the pastel to imply some detail at the end of the painting helped define certain shapes. The final effect of light was achieved in balancing these different techniques.

Pianissimo
24" × 30" (61cm × 76cm) by Deborah Bays

Moving the Viewer’s Eye with Value and Edges
DEBORAH BAYS

I often think of making a painting as I would think about playing an instrument. Where I normally play—or in this case paint—scales, arpeggios and études, it was my intent to play a concerto with Pianissimo. I wanted to use all of the technique that I could muster at the time to create a larger and more complex piece. This was a challenge that I set for myself. I thought I knew where I was going (always a dangerous assumption) and used the steps described in the demonstration of Milk Pitcher with Pears and an Apple. (See painting a still life.)

There were plenty of challenges to deal with. I wanted to move the viewer’s eye through the painting using value and edges. I selected the marble bust for its inherent advantages as the focal paint. It is light in value, takes the light beautifully and has the added plus of the “face factor;” which is that a face, human or animal, will always draw the focus. I also wanted to develop different texture utilizing some of the unique attributes of pastel. I allowed color to take a backseat to the other elements, staying with a tight, warm palette. I had to remind myself often to paint the light falling on the objects and not the objects themselves.