Learning how to pastel

[Carolyn Ortiz]

Hello! Happy New Year!

This is my third pastel this week. Pastels are really tough, but so much fun.

I can see some things that are off already, and for some reason the picture is showing up a little too blue especially on the side of the nose. I am also finding it difficult to get the correct values and colors with a little more than 30 sticks. Anyway enough fault finding from me, any critiques and pastel tips would be greatly appreciated! This is on Canson Mi-Tientes.

[Geary Wootten]

Hi Carolyn,

Really great capture of a likeness. I like the chromatic reflections going on over 99% of it. The only place that pops out at me as a bit askew are two teensy areas.

On her lower right jowl area there's the yellowish white spot that creates an slightly unseemly bulge. The other spot is the smear on the bottom of the line of the jaw. Both of these things makes that jowl area sort of distorted.

Geary

[Carolyn Ortiz]

Hi Geary,

Thanks a lot for your response. I'll work on that area and hopefully take some new photos. These look way to saturated with color. It really doesn't look like this in real life. But I guess maybe there is too much color in it anyway, have to buy more pastels I think.

[David Draime]

Hi Carolyn!

I really love your handling of the medium - very fresh, honest.... beautiful edges. I agree with you that in some places the color seems a bit intense. Beyond that, I can't find fault with it. I just started my first pastel yesterday and can already see how challenging it is. Have you been working in pastels long?

-David

[Carlos Ygoa]

Hello Carolyn,

I have nothing negative to say about the way you handled the figure. I like everything about it, the fresh handling that David spoke about. I also like the "landscape" format, and perhaps this is where my only comment lies: I would add some colour to the right side of the paper if not a minor object or element altogether, just to balance off but not detract from the face which, I repeat, I would not touch.

This did take long to do? I haven't worked in pastels for eons although I do remember how much fun it can be. I used to know someone who would work in pastels but with a brush and he would come up with very highly finished portraits. Personally I like the fresher, more spontaneous look.

Happy new year to you too.

Carlos

[Sharon Knettell]

Carolyn,

I think you have done a REMARKABLE job with the very limited amount of sticks at your disposal. My first set of pastels was done with a beginners set of 300 colors, and I found that difficult.

I don't mind the blue, little patches of a color surprise don't bother me as long as they are the proper values as yours are.

I have two areas of concern, the first is the yellowish patch on her jaw line. You don't need it it, it jumps. The other part is her arm, the upper part is too narrow. You don't in my opinion, need anything on the right of the picture.

You seem to have a natural aptitude for pastel, it must be in your genes as the greatest pastellists of the past were French, like de La Tour, Jean-Baptiste Perronneau and Jean-Etienne Liotard.

However, not to be chauvinistic in these delicate times, I find the Great American Pastels superior than the Senneliers in color sequencing and softness.These features are important to the figurative artist and they do not crumble. They are also now available in France.

I really think you should add to your collection of pastels. You are off to a really wonderful start.