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Pastel ArtPastel Techniques and TipsPastel art is a skill unto it self. It requires some very specific techniques which are unique in their own way. Unlike other mediums, the biggest difference is that they smudge easily which is great when you want it to, but not so great when you don't. The following are some examples of my work using soft pastel pencils for detailed areas, soft pastel chalks for large areas, hard pastel chalks for highlighting, and soft pastels dissolved in a small amount of water for soft backgrounds. Some of these paintings are available in canvas and regular prints which can also be purchased with matting and a frame. Go to pastel canvas prints and scroll down to the third line. Drawing with PastelsTo prevent smudging, there are several things you can do. You can:
It is a stick which is about 3 feet long and has a ball on the end of it. It is most frequently used by oil painters to keep out of wet areas, but also works great for preventing smudging of pastels. It also helps steady your hand when you are doing fine detail To use the mahl, you rest the ball on a dry surface of you work and hold it at the other end with the hand you do not paint with. You can then just rest your painting hand on it and work without touching the surface. If you don't want to buy one, you can make one easy enough using a sturdy dowel and small pouch of soft material wrapping one end of the dowel. You can hold the material on with a heavy rubber band. I don't like putting the end of the mahl on any part of my painting or drawing. I have made a very simple mahl that works very well, is inexpensive, and only touches the edge of the surface. I just got a 3 foot long dowel which was about 3/4 inch thick. I rest the side of one end on the rigid edge of my work, and cradle the other end in my non-drawing hand. Then I rest my working hand any place along the dowel that I need to, in order to work easily where I want without disturbing the pastel. What is a Mahl Bridge? It works the same as the stick, but it clamps onto you canvas or drawing board in the case of pastels and watercolors when you are working on paper. If you are creative and a wood worker, you could make one yourself, but it is a little more complicated that the mahl stick. Clear Tracing PaperI specify clear so that you distinguish it from carbon or graphite tracing paper which will leave a residue on your artwork. The clear tracing paper will slightly pick up some of the pastel, but generally this is minimal and it is great for storing the work so it does not smudge. Care of the
Chalks
Moisture I mentioned above that I combined soft pastel chalk with water to make backgrounds using water color techniques. I used this for the background of the garden painting with the cat and wheel barrel full of flowers in it. I didn't have watercolors at the time, so this was the perfect solution for keeping color continuity through the painting, plus a really nice effect. I also used the mixed-media technique for doing the background of the roses. I wasn't sure what I wanted for the background, so I did the roses first. Then came the challenge of getting a background which would fit around the all the leaves and flowers without looking like it was added later. Since watercolors will only bleed into wet areas, I wet only the background as I went along and got the results I wanted.  Click on the Maple Leaf Link to wet you appetite for this mixed-media technique. It is a free video I made demonstrating some of the things you can do with this technique.
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