I know I am not alone in wanting to maintain my creative practice whilst working full-time in another field. With this in mind I have begun to work within my time frame; learning new techniques on-line Karen Margulis – pastel artist and testing out my new found knowledge in short bursts of activity. The following images are some pastel landscape techniques I have been playing with along with some brief notes on my learnings:

• Moving from a paper surface (Canson paper) to a textured board improves the ability to layer  pastels and adds textural interest
• Working from a ‘notan’ – a small black and white study, helps to focus on contrast and values which add interest
• The need to have a ‘pathway’ from foreground to a ‘destination’ point
• Choosing your palette of colours before commencing your pastel painting saves time
• Working on smaller ‘studies’ rather than trying to complete a finished piece frees you up to explore

I hope these notes were of value to you.  I will endeavour to share my new learnings and thoughts over the next few months. If it’s just 10-15 minutes a day, it is worthwhile and you will see results! Thank you for your continued support I very much appreciate it.

First study on paper, could use deeper values and stronger contrast

Colour a little more dynamic but probably needs areas further defined

Second study on paper – contrast better on this one

Tiny textured board – my last study of this collection and my favourite!