Meandering Into the Sunset

"Meandering Into the Sunset"
8" x 10"
Pastel on black hardboard 
If I had been on a horse that evening, I would have ridden to that point on my painting where the water reaches the tree line. I would have made it there before night consumed every last bit of color, and back again.  Or not. 

Carol

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Eucalyptus Revisited

"Eucalyptus Revisited"
10" x 8"
Pastel on black canvas



















I was compelled to tackle the eucalyptus tree I drew with graphite the other day in pastels. The colors were as appealing as the composition. 

 I like how the weeds in front lead us to the stream, which takes us back up to the tree and the crop behind it.

Carol

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Ornamental Grass

"Ornamental Grass"
5" x 5"
Pastel on gessoed panel
Ornamental grasses waved in front of the blue and red salvia at the Botanic Gardens that day in August last year. A gusty breeze kept tossing them into the shot, so I made sure to include them in this particular composition. 

I'm back to doing a few small pastels while I work on a large oil painting.

Also, I don't believe I mentioned that I'm participating in a "Thirty paintings in Thirty days" event on Leslie Saeta's website. Check it out if you're interested.

Carol

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Sweet Succulent

"Sweet Succulent"
5" x 5"
Pastel 
I found a photo I took of a succulent, you know those reddish ones with magenta and orange tones that make you shake your head in amazement, and decide it would be my next challenge for pastels.  I delighted in matching the colors and defining the edges in the appropriate hues, too.  

The originals of all of my paintings are so much more colorful than the camera picks up. The subtleties are lost here, but they exist. I've said it before, but it's particularly true in this one. 

Carol



The Gang's All Here

"The Gang's All Here"
8" x 6"
Pastel on gessoed panel



















While I was perusing my photos from the Botanic Gardens I came across this riotous scene. I happened on the colourful plantings when the shadows were deep and the blooms were at their finest. 

 I'm thankful to have shot thousands of images from which to choose on days when my actual surroundings are grey, colourless and pretty much buried under layers of slush.

Carol

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Morning Behind Me

"Morning Behind Me"
4" x 4"
Pastel on hardboard
I saw this sky in my rearview mirror as I drove that morning. The opalescent colors lingered in the humid air and presented me with a rectangular gift of color for about twenty minutes. 

I tested a couple of products to achieve this texture.  I painted Liquitex clear gesso onto an aquabord panel. The gesso gave additional tooth to an already textured panel.  I didn't  sand it, just toned it, as usual, and proceeded. I'll be experimenting more as time goes on.

Carol

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Lalique Blue Jay

"Lalique Blue Jay"
7" x 5"
Pastel on hardboard



















The jay postured as if it were intent on gathering vital information, or watching fledgelings about to drop into the sky for the first time. Nevertheless, the artist who fashioned the figure of this glass bird captured an interesting stance. 

I painted this bird with its bulbous friend last January. Both glass birds were borrowed, but fortunately I took photos before returning them.  As I said in this space a month or so ago, I'm trying to paint in pastel some of the subjects I've painted in oil.

Carol

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Prickly Pear Night

"Prickly Pear Night"
8.5" x 5.5"
Pastel on sanded paper





















The Botanic Gardens has a desert garden with a variety of cacti inside where it's cozy, dry and warm. I photographed some of their beautiful succulent plants while there the other day. Here's a stand of prickly pears that had such luscious dar foliage behind it that it appeared to be night time.  

I sprayed this piece with a matte fixative and it darkened the colors a bit. I was told not to, but I just wanted to see what would happen. I have so much to learn. 

Carol 

Memories of West

"Memories of West"
7" x 4"
Pastel on sanded paper



















I painted away from home today. I saw a reference to a subject similar to this so I drew it and painted it from memory. I love the prickly texture of the cactus and the surroundings, too.  It was a fun one to do. 

As usual, this one started on a piece of 140 pound D'Arches French Watercolor paper that I sanded until it felt like suede. I toned the paper with a layer of a burgundy and a layer of cobalt and sanded them into the sueded finish. I brushed it off and then drew a rough sketch of the cactus, then put in my darks.

Carol

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Last Glimpse

"Last Glimpse"
4.5" x 7"
Pastel on sanded paper
There's been more color in the sky this past week than I've seen in a while. It seems happy, glowing, like if it could, it would also sing.  Fall, it must be ... fall. 

 I've made lots of skies with oil paint, so tonight I tried one with pastel. It's not as easy as I thought it would be. I'm used to blending more easily. I'll learn it, I'm sure.

Carol

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After the Rain

"After the Rain"
4.5" x 7"
Pastel on sanded paper
The setting sun shone like nature's very own photo editing program against the wet leaves of the scrub oaks. I was on my way to Ginger Whellock's open house last week as the sun finally peeked through. I shot photos from a speeding car to capture the light and the shapes on the hillside as my friend drove. I knew I'd paint them in pastel, at least once.  

 All the rain in the Denver area this year has made the foothills of the front range look like a Persian tapestry this fall. I chose to be in Denver not only because of Ginger's fabulous gathering, but because of the colors.

Carol

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Outskirts of Town

"Outskirts of Town"
3.5" x 5"
Pastel on sanded paper
Just outside of town, before I got home the other night I stopped to take one last look at my surroundings.  There were no cacti, no sagebrush, no sand. When I turned into my driveway I knew what I had experienced had been magical and I wanted more. 

This was a twenty minute little cutie pie I did this afternoon. The inspiration came from a photo I saw in a magazine, so I went with it.  I will have to prepare a lot of small pieces of watercolor paper so that I can enjoy painting like this more often.  It was quite fun.

Carol

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"Aspen Leaves"
11" x 15"
Pastel on paper
While I was scoping out the beautifully-remodeled Abend Gallery in Denver, I happened on two of the gallery's artists actively painting on site. One was the darling oil painter, Tammi Otis and the charming pastel artist, Bruce Gomez. Both artists welcomed me to their State and chatted with me for several minutes.

Bruce noticed my obvious interest in what his students were creating and invited me to join the class the next morning. So I did! He gave me paper, let me use his easel, his pastels and brought me up to speed so I could finish with the rest of the women by end of day on Sunday.  This is the workshop image each of us was instructed to complete. His image, his pastels and my effort.  And I enjoyed it completely.

Carol

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Bee Yourself

"Bee Yourself"
7.5" x 7.5"
Pastel on paper
I saw this bee and knew I would have to try to paint him. I liked his furry thorax, the glint in his eye, the translucent shadow he cast on the petals, and his leaded glass wings.  Yup, this was a challenge I'd rise to, with thick pieces of chalky pastel. 

This is my offering for the weekly Challenge on Dailypaintworks.

Carol

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Rose Wild Rose

"Rose Wild Rose"
7" x 7"
Pastel on paper
I found a bush of wild roses during the season and shot some photos of the blooms. I did't know these simple flowers would be perfect for me to try my first pastel of a rose... not too many petals. I have one warm pink pastel, a red and an orange so there was a lot of mixing of color to get what I was seeing in my photo. Good practice, I suppose.  

I met with the Princeton Brush representatives today. They're going to send some additional brushes to me so I don't have to use just one. They would like me to be fluent in Catalyst before they film me in a few weeks.  It was a productive and fun meeting.

Carol

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English Walled Garden

"English Walled Garden"
7" x 10"
Pastel on paper
I painted at the Chicago Botanic Gardens this morning. The light was brilliant, the air was autumnal, and it was a beautiful day to be there.  Plein air doesn't get better than this.  

I'm learning as I go with this wonderful medium.  And I'm so thankful I didn't ignore the opportunity to explore it.  I have to thank my friend Ken Lutgen for inspiring me during a plein air session earlier this summer.  He doesn't even know it's entirely his fault.

Carol

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Wave Good-bye

"Wave Good-bye"
6" x 8"
Pastel on paper
I found a photo of a wave that appealed to me for its colour and shape. I'm not comfortable with waves that are this large, but I like them when they're dry and stopped mid-curl, like this one.  

Pastel seems to be a part of my life now. I guess I'd better take a lesson or two to see if I'm doing it right.

Carol

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Sunday With Daniel

"Sunday With Daniel"
9" x 12"
Pastel on paper
I went with my painting pals to the Daniel Wright Woods again, but this time, instead of taking my oil paints, I brought a box of pastels and a pad of colored paper. I began painting on the textured side of a sheet and hated it. I untaped it, folded it and stuffed it into my Ed Hardy backpack.  I flipped the paper to the smoother side and redrew what I had already planned. The guys had a good head start on me, but I managed to finish all but a few waterlilies by quitting time.  

I'm enjoying pastels about as much as any medium I've tried.  Even though I've posted others, this is my second pastel painting.

Carol

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