Andrew McDermott – How To Loosen Up
Friday, 13 October 2023
17 Comments
Guest Andrew McDermott shares tips for spontaneity, textures, and maintaining a loose painterly style, all while having fun with your artwork.
HowToPastel Archives
Showing Results for: painting process
Lynn Howarth – Portraits That Capture Likeness And Soul
Friday, 22 April 2022
52 Comments
I’m delighted to bring Lynn Howarth to the HowToPastel blog! I’ve been following Lynn’s work for years now. I’ve always admired her portraits and it’s these that are the focus of her guest post here today. I also appreciate the way Lynn manages to push her work, exploring new territory. An example of this was
Seeing Colour In Greys – “Sipping Patrón”
Thursday, 3 February 2022
36 Comments
If you know me, you know I LOVE colour! I love painting with bright colours and then, when needed, layering pastels to create greys. This de-intensifies the saturated colours. Seeing colours in greys can sometimes be tricky. It all just looks grey! With time, deep looking, and the tips below, you’ll see the colour that’s
Embracing The Imperfection In Plein Air Painting
Friday, 13 August 2021
36 Comments
I’m recently home from a wonderful and relaxing getaway to Ontario (yay to a bit of travel!!) where Cam and I spent time with family and friends. Part of our trip was a week at the White family cottage on Big Rideau Lake where I planned to do some pastelling en plein air. I hadn’t
Making A Statement With Your Art
Tuesday, 14 April 2020
12 Comments
Sometimes you may have the feeling that you’d like to make a statement with your art, something about the times you’re living in (like the time of the COVID-19 pandemic!), or some specific event, or some political issue. But you don’t necessarily feel comfortable making an overt statement or perhaps you just don’t know how
Painting A Bouquet Of Flowers – A Very Special Bouquet!
Saturday, 24 August 2019
22 Comments
We had a plan. I would go to Salt Spring Island for three days and I, along with my mum and dad, would go out to work en plein air every day. It had been sunny for weeks. I went to Salt Spring and the next morning…. it was cloudy. And cool. And grey. Really.
Focus On Process Not Outcome
Friday, 2 August 2019
43 Comments
Before every workshop I teach, I have students read a blog I did some time ago called the 14 Ways To Get The Most Out Of A Workshop. I ask each participant to choose one of the points that they know will be a struggle for them. At my most recent workshop (in Gibsons, BC,
Ambiguity In Art – How It Can Benefit Your Own Work
Sunday, 31 March 2019
32 Comments
Ambiguity in art: art work having several possible interpretations or meanings; of an uncertain nature. And why am I bringing this up? Think of the Mona Lisa’s smile. It’s ambiguous- we don’t know why she’s smiling and there are so many possible stories we could create. She’s kept us intrigued all through the centuries and
Using Black Paper For Pastel Painting
Friday, 15 March 2019
60 Comments
I was asked recently why I don’t use black paper. My preference is for a mid-tone paper. Nowadays though I mostly work on a light value paper on which I create a three-value dry underpainting. The reason I’m not that keen on black paper is that I can’t go lighter AND darker on the paper.
Tips On Painting An Overcast Day
Tuesday, 15 May 2018
8 Comments
Although painting an overcast day is not something I generally do (I definitely have a preference for sunny days!), while in Spain teaching a plein air workshop at the beginning of May, the weather was more often overcast than sunny. So what could we do except go with what we had? Painting an overcast day
