Pastel Painting

5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists

Ta b l e o f Co n t e n t s
S e ct i o n O n e S e ct i o n t w o
■ What You Need to Know to Start From Painting with Pastels: Easy Techniques
Pastel Painting by Greg Albert to Master the Medium by Maggie Price
(from The Artist’s Magazine, ■ Blending Colors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
October 2009). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 ■ Tools for Blending . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
■ Using Color Studies as a
■ Support System: Select a Pastel Reference by Richard McKinley. . . 17
Surface That Best Suits Your Working
Style by Maggie Price (from Pastel
M o r e Pa s t e l R e s o u r c e s
Journal, June 2008). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
S e ct i o n O n e

Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 3

 Mediapedia ■ By Greg Albert

What is Mediapedia?
P astels are simple to use, with no drying time, allowing the
artist to draw directly on the surface without any intermediate
tool or medium to degrade the freshness of the color. The colors are
Mediapedia is an encyclopedia of art media. The
Artist’s Magazine is profiling a different medium in
brilliant, and a variety of techniques can create a wide range of effects, each issue this year. Next up: oils.
from crisp lines to soft edges and feathery textures. The medium is very
forgiving—mistakes can be easily lifted from the surface up to the
moment a fixative is applied.
Pastels are made from powdered pigments mixed with just enough
binder to be formed into sticks. They’re dry and can be applied in a Firm pastels such as
linear manner, so you could say the artist draws with pastels. But because Prismacolor Nupastels
they can also be applied in larger strokes and blended on the surface, it’s hold a point well and
also accurate to say an artist paints with pastels. The are especially good for
fine, powdery surface of a pastel painting refracts the preliminary drawings.
light to give it a sparkling quality.
Powdered pigments have been used since
prehistoric times, but pastels as we know
them date from the late 17th century.
Pastels became very popular in the late 1800s
as Manet, Degas, Renoir and Toulouse-
Lautrec used them. Degas in particular
explored the potentials of pastels
by combining them with other
media and pioneering the use
of fixatives.
Pastels can be purchased in
sets, some in handsome wooden
boxes, or individually in “open
stock.” There are dozens of
different manufacturers of pastels,
including boutique brands that
make pastels by hand from the
finest pigments.
October 2009 ■ www.artistsmagazine.com

■ Greg Albert, author of The Simple Secret

to Better Painting (North Light Books), lives
in Cincinnati, Ohio. To order his book, go to
www.northlightshop.com.

Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 4

 You can download past Mediapedia arti-
cles in our shop at www.northlightshop.
com/category/artists-magazine.

Chemistry
Pastels are made from finely ground pigment mixed with chalk or clay and a
binder, such as gum arabic or gum tragacanth, and formed into a stick. Their
Soft pastels, such as these by Terry colors can’t be mixed on a palette like paint, but must be mixed on the draw-
Ludwig, are easy to blend ing surface by blending, layering or using other techniques such as scum-
and have a rich color and bling (see opposite page).
velvety texture. Pastels vary in hardness by manufacturer. Hard pastels have more
binder than the softer pastels, and their colors may not be as vivid. Hard
pastels are good for preliminary drawing in particular because they can
hold a point and create crisp lines and details. Softer pastels contain less
binder and more pigment, a ratio that gives them a rich color and velvety
texture. They’re easier to blend and smudge than hard pastels, but soft
pastels are more delicate, are easily broken and create more dust. The
hardness of the pastel will affect the results of the techniques you use.
Some of the most popular brands of pastel include Girault (soft),
Great American (soft), PanPastels (soft), Prismacolor Nupastel (hard),
Rembrandt soft pastels (medium), Schmincke soft artists’ pastels (soft),
Sennelier (soft), Terry Ludwig (soft), Unison handmade pastels (soft),
and Winsor & Newton soft pastels (medium).

Must-have tools Tips and

Techniques
■ Drawing board and clips: A rigid surface is a must when working on paper. Pastel techniques are similar to draw-
■ Boxes for the pastels: Working with loose, disorganized pastels is inefficient ing and painting techniques. Try the
and frustrating. Get into the habit of limiting the number of loose sticks in your techniques listed at the right with
work area. Storage boxes will keep your pastels organized while you work and pastels of different brands and
assist in inventory control. degrees of hardness—each will create
■ Kneaded erasers: Use these for blending as well as for removing pastel from a slightly different result.
the surface.
■ Blending tools: Try various tools, such as paper stumps (also called

torchons or tortillons), cotton swabs, facial tissue and paper towels.

■ Razor blade and craft knife: Use these to sharpen hard pastels to a

point and to scrape off unwanted deposits of pastel from your work sur-
face.
■ Tracing paper: This is useful to protect your work from smudging as you

paint.
■ Protective gear: Dust masks, gloves or protective hand cream are

advisable.
■ Wet wipes: These are handy to clean up the pastel dust that didn’t

make it to the work surface.

■ Fixative: Workable fixative protects your work from smearing
but leaves it open for reworking; permanent fixative protects it from
damage and seals it from further alteration.

Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 5

 Safety and Cleanup
The downside to the soft consistency of pastels is the increased possibility of acci-
dentally ingesting the pigments. Although most pastels have an AP non-toxic label,
some have the CL (“Caution Label”) seal indicating they’re toxic or hazardous if not
used with appropriate caution.
Because pastels have so little binder, they easily generate dust that’s hard to Colorfix PanPastels are relatively new. The
contain, and you should take care not to breathe it in. Don’t blow loose powder off soft pastels, which come in small trays, are
the surface as you work—you risk inhaling it. Instead, tap the work over a applied with soft foam tools in a
waste bin to remove dust, and after each painting session, wipe down process similar to painting.
your work area with a wet paper towel; use a wet mop or a vacuum
with a HEPA filter to pick up any residue that has fallen to the floor.
If you work close to the paper, consider wearing a dust mask.
Blending pastels with the fingers is also a natural
impulse. It’s highly recommended to use gloves or a pro-
tective hand cream—such as Winsor & Newton Artguard
barrier cream, EZ Air Invisible Care, Invisible Glove or Mar-
velous Marianne’s SkinSafer barrier cream.
The usual precautions should be observed scrupulously with
pastels: Keep food and drink away from your work area and
never smoke while you work. Wash your hands thoroughly with
soap and water after using pastels.

1 2
Drawing with the tip of the
1 pastel: Holding the pastel stick like a
pencil produces lines of varying width and
character depending on the hardness of the
pastel and the pressure and speed of the
hand.
Drawing with the side of the pastel:
2 Using the side of the pastel stick pro-
duces broad strokes or blocks of color. The
character of the stroke depends on the soft-
ness of the pastel, the shape of the stick, the
texture of the drawing surface, and the pres-
sure and speed of your hand. Breaking a stick
in half may be necessary for a more manage-
able stroke. This technique works best with
softer pastels.
Blending with pastels: Unlike paint,
3 pastel colors can’t be mixed before
being applied to the drawing surface—you
must select a stick of the appropriate color or
blend colors directly on the surface. You can
3 4 5 6
create different effects and textures by how form and shape by varying the direction of
much or how little you mix the colors. the cross-hatching.
You can blend with your fingertips, but Scumbling: Scumbling with pastels is
the risk of ingesting the pigments warrants 5 very similar to scumbling with paint.
using protection. Also, a pastel surface can You apply a broken layer of color on top of
be rough enough that using your fingers can another layer of color, allowing the bottom
lead to bleeding. Other tools include paper color to remain visible. This technique works
stumps, kneaded erasers and cotton swabs best on a textured surface and with soft pas-
for precise work; facial tissues, paper towels, tel applied over hard. Try fixing the bottom
cotton balls and small, soft natural sponges layer before applying the top layer.
for larger, less precise work. Soft brushes are Working on a colored ground: Apply
good, if they don’t stir up dust. 6 pastels to a colored surface such as
Hatching and cross-hatching: Hatch- toned paper or a board, panel or canvas
4 ing is drawing fine, closely spaced par- painted with a colored ground or pastel
allel lines to create an area of color and value; primer. Allowing the colored ground to peek
cross-hatching is drawing similar lines per- through creates vibrant color. Many pastel
pendicular to the first. This technique works artists use an underpainting of watercolor or
best with harder pastels or pastel pencils and pastel to tone a piece of white pastel paper.
is useful to create texture or to allow the
eye to create an “optical blend” when differ-
ent colors are used. You can create a sense of

Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 6

 Soft pastels, such as these by Girault,
are easier to smudge, but matting
your work behind glass will help
protect it.

FAQs Are pastels a permanent medium?

Pastel is a fragile medium. Once prop-
erly fixed and appropriately framed, pas-
tels will remain as applied. As long as you use
high-quality cotton or linen rag paper, pastels won’t
crack, crumble or disintegrate. The lightfastness of pas-
tels is almost completely determined by the pigments
used; as with most artwork, prolonged exposure to
direct sunlight should be avoided. How many pastel colors do I need?
A common mistake beginners make is buying too many
How do you properly fix a pastel painting? colors. Limit your selection to a range of warm and
Unless sprayed with a protective artists’ fixative, pastel cool colors from each of the primary and secondary
artwork is subject to smudging and smearing, particu- hues, plus a few earth colors, neutrals or grays, black
larly if you use softer pastels. Using workable fixative and several sticks of white. You can augment your col-
protects your work from smearing but leaves it open lection with extra colors as needed. About 30 sticks is
for reworking; a permanent fixative protects it from a suitable number for a beginner’s pastel box. As you
damage and seals it from further alteration. develop a style, you’ll determine quickly which colors
Some pastel artists find that fixatives darken you use most.
their paintings; some new fixatives are addressing this
problem with good results. Can I clean my pastel sticks?
Matting and framing your work behind glass is the The fastest way to clean a pastel stick is to wipe it with
best way to keep it pristine. To store your pastel works, a paper towel. Or you can shake pastels gently in a lid-
keep them flat in boxes or a flat file with sheets of ded container of cornmeal or uncooked rice to remove
glassine between the drawings to minimize smearing. unwanted color.

Surfaces for Pastels

From left to right, you can see the effect of a soft pas-
tel used on Strathmore watercolor paper, Strathmore
charcoal paper, Mi-Teintes pastel paper and Colour-
fix coated pastel paper.
The most important consideration when selecting a surface for pastel work is the sur-
face’s “tooth”—the ability of its texture to grab and hold the pastel particles. A slick
or smooth surface has little to no tooth and won’t hold the pastel. On the other hand,
a very rough surface may not allow the pastel to cover completely. Much depends on
your personal preferences.
Most papers suitable for charcoal work well for pastels because they have a suf-
ficient tooth. Popular papers include Canson Mi-Teintes, Canson Ingres, Strathmore
500 Series and Fabriano Tiziano.
There are several papers made especially for pastel, such as Hahnemühle Velour
and Bugra, Amalfi handmade and Sennelier Papier Carré.
Some papers have coatings containing very fine particles to hold the pastel, such
as Wallis sanded pastel paper, Art Spectrum Colourfix coated pastel paper and Super-
tooth board, Sennelier La Carte pastel card and Ampersand Pastelbord.
Finally, you can apply primers and grounds to paper,
board or canvas panels to make them receptive to pastel.
Try Art Spectrum pastel and multimedia primer, Golden
pastel ground or Lascaux pastel ground.

Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 7

Special Report By Maggie Price
Support System
Select a pastel surface that best suits your working style.
W hether you’re an experienced pastel
artist or just getting started, choos-
ing a surface for a painting has a lot to do
with the final outcome. As the medium
of pastel has continued to gain popular-
ity over the last dozen or so years, the
number of surfaces available to the artist
has grown steadily. Here are some of the
important factors to consider as you sort
out the options.
Generally, pastel surfaces can be
grouped into two broad categories:
smooth and textured. Smoother surfaces
may only allow two or three layers of pas-
tel, but if you like to work quickly, that
may be sufficient for your needs. The
smooth surfaces also work well for highly
detailed work or subjects requiring fine
lines, which is why they’ve long been a
favorite of portrait and still-life artists.
Textured surfaces encourage lay-
ering, and some of them work well for
those artists who like to begin with an
underpainting. While fine lines and
detail are by no means impossible on
textured surfaces, some surfaces work
better than others for those purposes.
Many surfaces come in a variety of
colors, and the color you choose has a
profound effect on the resulting paint-
ing. You can choose a color that will
show throughout, creating harmony
and balance, or you can select a con-
trasting color that will add excitement
and energy. If you like to start your pas-
tel painting with a preliminary under-
painting, you’ll probably want to start
with white or a very light color.
Underpaintings give a new dimen-
sion to pastel paintings. Some sur-
faces will accept an underpainting in
many media, ranging from watercolor
to gouache to oil stains. Some artists
like to lay down a layer of pastel and
wash it with water, alcohol, mineral
spirits, acetone or Turpenoid. Bear in
Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 8
The First Kiss of Fall (16x20) by Maggie Price was cre-
ated on Richeson Premium Pastel Surface (terra cotta
Gator Foam).
Notice in the detail (above) how the texture of the
surface adds to the quality of the stucco wall, and
the terra cotta color of the surface gives the whole a
warm glow.
mind that certain surfaces are well-
suited for those approaches, while oth-
ers can’t be touched with liquid or only
with certain liquids.
The durability of the paper is
another factor. If you tend to rub, scrub,
erase and generally abuse the surface,
you obviously want something tough
enough to take it. If you have a light
touch and a delicate approach, the
heavy-duty stuff is probably wasted on
you.
Trying a lot of different surfaces
will lead you to those most suited to
your working style, and the experi-
mentation may push you in surpris-
ing directions as well. Even if you’ve
already got a favorite or two, take a
look at some of the exciting new sur-
faces recently released. If you ever find
yourself blocked or uninspired, there’s
nothing like trying out a new product
to revitalize your creative energies.
Smoother Surfaces
Canson Mi-Teintes Paper: Available
in a range of 42 colors, this has long been
a popular choice, especially for figure
drawing and portraits. It has a vellum-
like texture on one side and a flat surface
on the reverse, and artists generally have
a strong preference for one side or the
other; the rougher side can take more lay-
ers of pastel but the pattern of the paper
may show through. It’s a heavy, 98-lb.
sheet, 60 percent cotton. Unless you use
fixative on this surface, the number of
layers is quite limited. It’s available in
individual sheets that measure 19x25, and
considered light-resistant and acid-free.
Rives BFK Printmaking Paper: This is
a French mould-made paper (100 percent
cotton rag, neutral pH) and is buffered. It
has a smooth, vellum-like surface, and
it’s available in several colors. It can
take a surprising number of pastel lay-
ers. Extremely soft pastels may fill the
limited tooth rather quickly, however,
so you may need to apply fixative to
continue layering. It’s a tough surface
that can handle erasures, and it comes
with natural deckles and tear deckles.
Somerset Velvet Paper: Similar to
Rives in feel, the Somerset Velvet is a
mould-made paper (100 percent cotton,
neutral pH) with a softly textured fin-
ish. The soft surface is very receptive
to pastel and excellent for blending,
but isn’t at all like a velour paper. Like
the Rives BFK, this surface’s tooth can
fill quickly, but an application of fixa-
tive will solve that. Somerset Velvet is
available in 22x30 sheets, in four colors.
Aquarelle Watercolor Paper:
Although this paper has a limited
tooth, it’s somewhat textural. It’s a
mould-made paper (acid-free, chlo-
rine-free) and made of 100 percent
cotton fiber. Some artists give it a light
sanding with a fine-grit sandpaper to
rough up the finish. Others apply a mix-
ture of pumice and gesso (or use the Art
Spectrum Colourfix Primer, available in a
range of colors, or clear) to give it a some-
what sanded feel. Without any prepara-
tion, it will take only a limited number of
layers, but is a good choice if you like to
begin with watercolor for a mixed-media
approach.
Multimedia Artboard: Available in
black or white, for either oil or water-
based media, this surface takes a sur-
prising number of pastel layers, and

Smoother Surfaces

Canson Mi-Teintes, smooth side: A
fine line made with a pastel pencil
holds up well, while a single applica-
tion of soft pastel nearly covers the
surface.
Canson Mi-Teintes, textured side: A
line made with a pastel pencil breaks
up due to the texture, while the appli-
cation of two layers of pastel has still
not completely filled in the texture.
Somerset Velvet, white: This
smooth surface holds a line quite
well. A single layer of soft pastel
(purple) doesn’t fill the tooth; two
additional layers (red and pink) cover
well and still leave room for further
layering.
Somerset Velvet, black: While the
paper is the same, changing the
color of a surface affects the pastel’s
appearance. The pastel pencil line,
the single layer and multiple layers of
color all “pop” from the background
color.

Sample surfaces provided by Dakota Pastels (www.dakotapastels.com)

Rives BFK Printmaking Paper: A thin
line holds up well, and one layer of
soft pastel covers the surface almost
completely.
Aquarelle Watercolor Paper: Both
a pastel pencil line and a swatch of
color show the texture of the paper.
Additional layers could still be applied
without filling the tooth.
Multimedia Artboard: This surface
isn’t as smooth as it appears at first
touch. Note the breaking-up of the
pastel pencil line; a single layer of pas-
tel doesn’t fill the tooth. Even after
additional color is layered on, there’s
still visible grain.
Hahnemühle Velour Paper: Note
that even a fine line made with a pas-
tel pencil “bleeds” out to a soft edge;
a single pass of color laid on with a
medium-soft pastel has fuzzy edges
and a soft look.

Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 9

Special Report
the rigid board is easy to handle, espe-
cially for plein air work.
Hahnemühle Velour Paper: Avail-
able in several colors, this soft, velvety
surface takes softer pastels well, but in
limited layers (usually requiring some
fixative). Available in a range of colors
in 19x27 sheets, it’s acid-free and archi-
val. The velour surface is produced by
applying inert synthetic fibers onto a
backing sheet. Velour holds pastel well
and is very appropriate for soft edge
Textured Surfaces
Townsend Pastel Paper: More tex-
tural than it first appears, this
surface holds a fairly good line
made with a pastel pencil. A sin-
gle layer of color doesn’t fill the
tooth, nor do two subsequent lay-
ers.
work due to the nature of the longer
fibered velour surface. Also available
as boards, the velour paper is applied
to an acid-free, 4-ply conservation
board. It’s well-suited for artists look-
ing for a very soft effect without fine
lines or hard edges.
Textured Surfaces
Townsend Pastel Paper: This sur-
face is produced by applying a coating
to Rives BFK 100 percent cotton, 280-
gram paper. A mixture of two grades
Schmincke Sansfix: Fine lines Wallis Sanded Pastel Paper: Fine
remain crisp without breaking lines and hard edges are fairly
up; the surface is well-covered easy to achieve, and the paper
by the soft pastel, but allows for will take many layers of pastel.
additional layering. At right, the red pastel has been
washed with Turpenoid; the yel-
low scribble was applied after
the surface was dry to show the
remaining tooth.
of silica, methyl cellulose, liquid adhe-
sive, chalk, whiting and water is hand-
brushed onto the paper. Several passes
are made to achieve a smooth, even
surface, much like very fine sandpaper.
The coating is clear, with coloration
coming from the BFK sheet colors.
The Townsend paper is archival and
will handle light water-based washes
as well as solvent-based washes.
Sennelier La Carte Pastel Card: Often
referred to simply as “pastel card,” this
surface comes in a range of colors. Its
somewhat toothy surface is made of
a pH-neutral vegetable fiber, affixed
to a firm support and allows numer-
ous layers of pastel. The binder used to
produce the surface is susceptible to
liquid; even a spot of water will cause
the fiber surface to come off, so it’s not
a good choice if you like to begin with
an underpainting. Blending and rub-
bing work well, and fine lines are easy
to achieve. The surface is available in
14 colors, in 19½ x25½ sheets.
Schmincke Sansfix: With a texture
similar to sanded paper, this surface
comes in a range of colors. It allows
generous layering and can take a sharp
line. Though alcohol washes may
cause the surface to become sticky, it’s
a water-resistant surface. The archi-
val paper is available in six colors, in
19½x25½ sheets.

Art Spectrum Colourfix Sanded

Sennelier La Carte: The textured
surface still holds a line, and mul-
tiple layers of pastel cover well,
but there’s still room to add more
before filling the tooth.
Sample surfaces provided by Dakota Pastels (www.dakotapastels.com)
Art Spectrum Colourfix: moothly
sanded and textural, the sur-
face holds a line nicely and allows
numerous layers of pastel.
Ampersand Pastelbord: The tex-
tured surface allows fine lines,
layering and underpainting tech-
niques. The pastel on the right
has been washed with Turpenoid,
dried and a streak of yellow across
it reveals the tooth remaining.
Paper: The prepared sheets come in a
range of colors; the colored texture is
applied to a paper leaving a thin white
edge all around. This surface takes many
layers and will accept wet media under-
paintings. This company also sells a tex-
tured pigment in jars for application to
your own surfaces; it comes in a range of
colors, as well as clear.
Wallis Sanded Pastel Paper: Available
in white or a neutral gray, this smooth-
textured sanded surface has an even grain
and will accept many, many layers of pas-
tel. If your painting doesn’t work out, the
pastel can be washed off and the paper
re-used. It can be underpainted with wet

Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 10

Pecos in Winter (18x26), by Fred Miller, was painted on Art Spectrum Colourfix—a sanded paper.
media, from oil washes to watercolor, or
pastel (applied and washed with various
liquids). Because its base is watercolor
paper, it’s archival and pH neutral. The
paper comes in 9x12 or 12x18 pads, and in
sheets and rolls in two grades. While both
are fully archival, the professional grade
is based on a lighter weight of watercolor
paper than the museum grade.
Ampersand Pastelbord: A thin sheet
of material similar to Masonite is the
backing for this textured board (avail-
able in a number of colors). Pastels
seem particularly brilliant when applied
to this surface, which allows layering
and wet media underpaintings. The
rigid board is an advantage in framing,
since it doesn’t have to be matted, and it
comes in a nice range of standard sizes.
Glossary of Terms
Tooth refers to the texture of the paper.
For pastel artists, the more tooth a sur-
face has, the more layers of pastel it will
hold. Once the tooth is filled, no more
pastel can be applied (without applying
fixative).
Surface usually means the type of
paper or board the artist is using. Sur-
faces include papers, boards, panels,
etc. Sometimes, surface may refer to a
coating applied to a paper or a board,
but the whole is then also referred to as
a surface.
Board generally means a rigid surface,
rather than a paper surface. In some
Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 11
cases, paper may be mounted to a
board.
Archival, acid-free and pH neutral all
refer to the relative acid content of a
surface. Generally, if a manufacturer
says a paper is archival, it means the
paper is acid-free and will last longer
than a paper that isn’t acid-free. The
pH term refers to the relative acid or
alkaline content; a pH factor of 7 or
higher is considered acid-free. News-
print, for example, is highly acidic and
yellows or deteriorates quickly. You
want your paintings to last, so look
for the words acid-free, pH neutral and
archival.
Special Report
New or Improved
UART: Ersta paper fans will feel at home on this
updated surface, which allows delicate lines, lay-
ering and underpainting. The swatch on the right
was washed with Turpenoid, creating a smooth fill
of the surface without destroying the tooth.
Lavender No. 4, France (12x16) by Urania Christy Tarbet was painted on Ampersand Pastelbord, a textured surface rigid enough to frame without matting.
Sabretooth: The textured surface breaks up a pas-
tel pencil line, but allows multiple layers of pastel
to build without filling the tooth.
Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 12
New or Improved
UART: This is the “new generation” of
Ersta sanded paper, long a favorite of pas-
tel artists for its smooth, sanded surface.
While the “old” Ersta wasn’t pH neutral,
the UART paper is. It’s available in four
grits, from P400 to P800, in sheets from
9x12 to 27x40, and in rolls 56 inches wide
and up to 50 yards long. It’s a little lighter
in color than the old Ersta, but will take
layers and layers of pastel, as well as un-
derpaintings washed with Turpenoid or
other solvents.
Saint-Armand Sabretooth pastel paper:
Sabretooth has been around for some
time, but this surface has been revised
recently. It’s a rag-based paper made in
Canada—archival, acid-free, lightly tex-
tured and internally sized. The acrylic-

Rug Sale, Marbella (11x14), by Maggie Price, was created on Rtistx pastel board.
based sand coating is applied with a roller
to achieve an even textured surface. The
coating will take both water and sol-
vent-based washes, and can withstand
vigorous scrubbing and reworking. It’s
available in nine colors in sheets of 22x30
or packs of four 15x20 sheets of a single
color.
Colourfix Supertooth: Art Spectrum’s
Colourfix Supertooth painting boards
have a more aggressively toothy surface
than the standard Art Spectrum Colour-
fix papers. Supertooth is made by coating
500-gram, acid-free, archival watercolor
boards with a specially formulated clear
acrylic primer mixed with silica particles.
The clear coating allows the natural warm
white color of the board to show through,
and the rigidity of the heavyweight board
provides a stout working surface. The sur-
face of this paper can hold many layers of
pastel, and can be underpainted with any
medium.
Richeson Premium Pastel Surface:
This new pastel surface is produced on
three different substrates: 140 lb. paper,
1 /8 -inch hardboard and 3 /16 -inch Gator-
foam board. It’s an aggressively toothy
surface, and will hold many layers of
pastel. It accepts liquids for underpaint-
The Newest Surfaces
Colourfix Supertooth: Lines and layering reveal
the heavy tooth of this paper. The red swatch
on the right was washed with Turpenoid prior
to applying the yellow stroke.
ing in most any medium, or any kind
of liquid wash over pastel. After apply-
ing an underpainting—and using very
soft pastels—you can still get quite a
few layers on the surface without filling
the tooth. The surfaces are available in
seven colors and in a range of sizes. The Richeson Premium Pastel Surface: Fine lines
Gatorfoam board and the Hardboard with a pastel pencil break up a little, while
can easily be framed without mats, and strokes with soft pastel show the texture. Layers
their rigid surfaces make them ideal for upon layers can be applied to this surface. The
plein air work. red swatch on the right was washed with Turpe-
noid for a smooth covering of the surface with-
Rtistx Pastel Board: This new pastel out filling the tooth.
surface is fused to a lightweight, rigid
polyvinyl board. It comes in two grades:
240 (heavier grit, in taupe) and 280 (not
as coarse, in white, and often used for
oils as well as pastels). The surface is
acid-free with a pH-neutral coating. Sizes
range from 8x10 to 18x24. The manufac-
turer recommends not using alcohol or
acetone with underpaintings, though
Turpenoid or water work well. Like other
board surfaces, you can frame without Rtistx Pastel Board: The textured surface can
mats. handle numerous layers of pastel, though the
color covers quickly and easily. The swatch of
Maggie Price (www.maggiepriceart.com) is red on the right was washed with Turpenoid and
a contributing writer for The Pastel Journal, a dried before the pink stroke was applied.
pastel artist and teacher, and the co-founding
editor of The Pastel Journal. Her book, Painting
With Pastels, was released last year from North
Light Books.
Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 13
S e ct i o n t w o

Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 14

blending colors
You can use your fingers to blend pastels to create dramatic
skies and mirrored reflections. Over-blending flattens colors
and can make them muddy, but used properly, this technique
is great for skies and water.
To understand the pros and cons of blending, you must
first understand the characteristics of the pastel pigment.
The structure of the particles of pigment is crystalline, with
facets like a cut diamond. This is what makes pastel paint-
ings so luminous and brilliant. But when you blend the
pastel, you are to some extent flattening or crushing those
faceted particles. If you want to dull a color to help push it
toward the background of a painting, such as in the sky, this
can be an advantage. But if you want to keep the characteris-
tic luminosity and glow of pastel, apply an unblended layer
of color.

BEFORE
first layer of color
To paint soft, fluffy clouds, first apply pastel to a
sanded paper, or other surface with a fair amount
of ˝tooth,˝ using a number of colors. Clouds aren’t
just white! Look for pale pinks, lavenders, yellows,
greens, blues and grays, and put all the colors you
see on the paper. Put enough pastel on the surface
to blend, but not so much that the grain is filled.

AFTER
colors blended together
Using the side of your hand, you can blend the
colors together with a circular motion, bringing
them right over the edge of the blue sky. More
pastel can be added after the first blending.

protecting your hands

You can wear a latex glove if you wish, or
use a barrier cream to protect your skin. If
you’re working on a sanded surface, avoid
excessive blending without a glove: You could
sand your skin to the point of bleeding into
the pastel!

Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 15 49

 tools for blending
A number of tools are available for blending to soften edges,
move color and mix it on the paper. In addition to tools sold
commercially for these purposes, there are things you may
have in your home that work well for blending. Styrofoam
peanuts, the “core” of Fome-Cor (cut a piece off, remove the
paper from the front and back, and you have a firm blending
tool that can be cut to any size or shape) or even eyeshadow
applicators all make good blending tools.
Layering Color
Use layers of pastels over other pastels to blend colors.
When you don’t have the color you want, you can create it
with layers of colors. You can also layer and intermix colors
for optical blending effects, or to create broken color (small
strokes of several colors of the same value applied to an
area, layered and side-by-side, to create interesting color).

paint shapers tortillions pastel pencils and charcoal

A rubber-tipped paint shaper is similar to a
paintbrush, except the “brush“ is a rubber shape
with some broad edges and some narrow edges.
They work well to blend colors, and can also
remove color. I use the Colour Shaper brand.
Tortillions, or stumps, are traditional pastel and
charcoal blending tools. Their fine points can
get into small spaces and push the pastel into
the paper.
You can use thin sticks of extra-soft vine charcoal
or pastel pencils to feather edges. Hold the
stick or pencil far back from the point and fan it
gently across an area you wish to blend. Using
charcoal may gray the color a little, while using
pastel pencils may glaze on a little extra color as
it blends your pastel pigments.

tapping layering glazing

Create soft edges by tapping the pastel with your
fingers. Unlike blending, tapping does not mud-
dy colors but can be useful for softening edges or
melding two or more colors together.
Layering hard pastel over soft is one way to Glazing with a stroke of soft pastel, holding the
blend while adding color. Try this in an area of stick on its side, is a way to layer color without
foliage: With very soft pastels, put down several blending. Where the layer is thinnest, the effect
greens, perhaps add some oranges, and then of a different color is created.
lightly stroke over the soft pastels with the side or
tip of a firm yellow or yellow-orange pastel. The
harder pastel will blend the colors together while
adding the impression of sunlight. You can create
a similar effect in shadowed areas by using soft
pastels in dark colors and then blending with a
blue or blue-green hard pastel.

50 Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 16

 D E M O N S T R A T I O N

using color studies as a reference

Artist Richard McKinley likes to work on location, but some-
times a painting done outdoors inspires him to paint a larger
version of the subject back in the studio.
The artist spent a lot of time on location observing and
studying the many moods of this landscape, its atmosphere
and the play of textures in the tidal marshes. The quick study,
on white Wallis Museum-Grade Sanded Paper mounted on
illustration board, was done in less than an hour, with the
purpose of capturing information that could be re-interpret-
ed back in the studio.

Field study, Fir Island Afternoon

materials list 9" × 12" (23cm × 30cm) by Richard McKinley

White Museum Grade Wallis Sanded Pastel

Paper mounted on museum board

Nos 4, 8 and 10 flat oil bristle brushes

2b drawing pencil

Soft paper towels

watercolor paints
Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium Red Orange, Burnt
Sienna, Alizarin Crimson, Ultramarine Blue,
Cobalt Blue, Paynes Gray, Sap Green

pastels
light warm white, middle-value lemon yellow,
middle-value yellow-orange, light ochre yel-
low, middle-value orange-brown, middle-value
ultramarine blue, light ultramarine blue, light
cobalt blue, dark blue-green, light green-blue,
1 Make the Sketch for the Studio Piece
If you have any concerns about the composition, make a few thumbnail
sketches. Otherwise, begin a pencil drawing with an ordinary 2b sketching pencil
middle-value turquoise blue, middle-value warm
green, light warm green, light yellow-green, dark on a piece of 14" × 18" (36cm × 46cm) white Wallis Museum-Grade Paper, mount-
orange-green, light blue green, middle-value ed on an illustration board. Work out the details of the composition and become
warm violet, light warm violet, dark blue-gray, familiar with the subject. Most of the drawing will be lost once the painting is
middle-value blue-gray, light blue-gray, dark vio-
started, but this allows you a chance to make sure everything is correct before
let-gray, light violet-gray, middle-value gray-green
adding pastel.
Look for rhythms and movement as you explore the subject in the drawing, and
make changes and improvements from the initial field sketch. For example, mov-
ing the horizon higher in the studio composition adds more distance and a stron-
ger sense of being grounded. The addition of a closer peninsula on the far right
helps balance the composition.

118 Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 17

2 Underpaint with Watercolor
We already know that an under-
painting is a way to set up the pastel
painting to follow. Watercolor does not
fill the tooth of the paper, so it’s a good
choice of medium. (Note that the paper
must be mounted to avoid buckling.)
As you underpaint, think about what
colors and values of pastel you will be
using. Where you plan to use light pas-
tels, underpaint the watercolor a little
darker to give the pastel layer depth
and richness. Remember that pastel is
an opaque medium and anything you
do in the underpainting can be covered,
so experiment. You have nothing to
lose and everything to gain.

3 Begin Adding Pastel

After the underpainting dries thoroughly, you can start to apply pastel,
mellowing some of the harder edges in the underpainting. Begin placing pastel
around the focal point. In this composition, the focal point is located above center
in the left side of the painting. Think about how you can use color and value to
indicate aerial perspective—cooler, grayer and lighter colors in the distance and
warmer, saturated and darker ones in the foreground.
Try not to just fill in the underpainting—use small strokes and bits and pieces
of color to create texture and color. Lost and found edges are much more believ-
able than overly rendered outlines. Since more can always be added it’s best to
start in a softer, broken fashion, and refine just as much as necessary to complete
the form. The beginning should be very soft; you’ll add more definition later.
To get rid of any strong pencil lines left from the drawing, use a light applica-
tion of pastel and blend the color a little with a paper towel.

Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 18 119

 4 Refine and Move Forward
Begin painting the reflection
of the water to create the shore. The
underpainting works well for the
grassy bank, so leave it until the end to
resolve. If you paint it now, you could
overwork it and lose the underpainting
altogether. The water and bank are part
of the center of interest, so paint them
with stronger color notes, value con-
trasts and sharper edges.
Add more contrast to the distant
water against the shore. Lighter values
and more colors of similar value add
importance, so add more violet to the
distant marsh. As beautiful as the fore-
ground and background are, this paint-
ing is about the mid-ground.

5 Complete the Foreground

Slowly paint the foreground—if
you add too much pastel, the under-
painting will be lost. Keep in mind the
area of interest and avoid overworking
other areas. Remember that the focal
point is defined in part as the area of
most detail.
Add more texture to the water sur-
face with strokes of pastel, and con-
tinue to refine the reflections. The first
indications of light sparks—those little
twinkles of light where the sun hits the
water and sparkles—and separation
between the water and the shore can
now be placed. It’s easy to get these
too perfect and lose the sense of move-
ment and air. Slight smudging helps, as
does varying the pressure of the pastel.
Make any small adjustments you
see fit now—each stroke of the pastel
counts. Ask yourself this question: Will
more help or hinder?

120 Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 19

6 Finish the Painting
Before proceeding toward the finish, take a break. By
resting from the concentration of the painting, you will come
back to it with a fresh perspective. When you return to the
painting, listen to it. Reevaluate your original concept so you
can do what is needed to make the painting work, rather than
force it to a predestined conclusion.
The final touches can be subtle. Strengthen the violet in
the right-side grasses, which will intensify the green-silhou-
etted grasses in front of it and add interest. More separation
of the water and shore can be accomplished with the addi-
tion of more light sparkles. Add intense, sharp notes of green
to the green grasses on the left to make them stand out
more. Paint soft violet-gray grasses in the foreground and
silhouetted along the foreground shore, pulling the bank up
above the water level. The violet helps to tie together
the violet from the back into the foreground, creating more
harmony. It is the same value but weaker in chroma so as not
to compete with the focal area. Add some subtle, delicate
golden grasses to the right shoreline to counterbalance the
center of interest area. A few more notes of green can be
added to the foreground grasses and a final strengthening of
the light drifts on the water behind the grasses in the center
of interest.
Compare this studio piece to the field study on page 118.
The experience and knowledge gained in the field study is
translated to the studio piece and makes it stronger than
working from a photo alone.
Fir Island Afternoon
14" × 18” (36cm × 46cm) by Richard McKinley
Pastel Painting: 5 Articles on Pastel Basics for Artists | 20 121
 m o r e pa s t e l
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