Off Skiing, Soft Pastels on Sennelier Pastel Card
Size 11 x 15 inches
Artist's Collection
For this, I used a reference photograph of my son I took in the studio a couple of weeks ago. He'd just returned from a skiing holiday, so the hat and scarf seemed apt. I love the way the turquoise of the hat brought out a similar colour in his eyes.
I don't normally crop for my head portraits, but this really called for it - Those shapes would have been so much less interesting if they'd been allowed to remain whole.
I am really happy with the palette I chose - the deep red, turquoise and yellow ochre. And although I used a lot of greys on the skin, I think the variety of other colours keep it fresh and I believe the whole thing fits.
I hope to create more of this style in the very near future.
Grandma Wyn, Pastel Pencil on Strathmore Paper
Size 40cm x 30cm (mount size 50cm x 40cm)
When drawing from a photograph, it's easy to get bogged down in the detail. If you know the person you are drawing it can make it far easier to portray the personality rather than an array of wrinkles and blemishes.
This is my husband's Grandmother. She turned 100 last year, but I've never known anyone so happy and she's so full of life! This lady really is so much fun! I hope I caught the mischief in her eyes.
Some areas of a portrait I will copy faithfully, other parts, such as wrinkles and blemishes will generally be downplayed. This is not to flatter the subject - but because I am capturing a likeness, not drawing a map. The texture of the skin can usually be hinted at without even referring to individual lines. This impressionist approach takes practice, but I love to capture something in as few strokes as possible - if nothing else, it adds a freshness and vibrancy.
I have been using Sennelier Pastel Card for a while, but today my book of 40cm by 30cm pad of card arrived and I had to try it out! Other people have made comments (on Amazon) that there is too much variety in the book and it would be better to buy individual colours. At the moment I don't have any complaints about this.
First I used Antique White (a light sand colour) to draw a Fisher Price man. You won't be seeing this! Epic fail - as my kids would say.
Also today, some new pastels arrived. Amongst others were three shades of Unison 'Red'. They are a very cool red - approaching a deep pink. The colours themselves look edible and I knew there was one thing I had to christen them with - raspberries. I used a photograph I'd taken at a fruit-picking farm last summer.
The ground I used is a dark green - great as a compliment to the bright pink/red of the raspberries. The technique is much freer and more experimental than anything I've tried before, but I really love it. I stepped back several times - refining the blocked-in colours a little as I went.
Only when I hinted at the shape around the edges and added in highlights of a few of those little matt spheres did these actually begin to look like raspberries. I am very happy with what I've created here and it's a style I will definitely be returning to. Maybe tomorrow!
This painting will be sold without a mount or frame, but securely packaged under glassine and protected with Foam Board.
To view or buy my paintings, please check My Gallery.
