Category Archives: jenny keal pastel.

Demonstrating in Pastel

Posted on by
1

Watercolour sketch of Llyn Gwynant
Below is the demonstration painting that I did for Sandpiper Studio last weekend. This event was organised by owner Julie McLean who also teaches painting. The subject of the demonstration was water and reflections so I chose this view of Llyn Gwynant which I had sketched on a damp day. (Above) You can see the speckles where the rain has fallen on the sketch whilst the wash was still wet. I quite like painting watercolour sketches in the rain. It keeps the washes fluid and prevents you fussing about with the detail. I emphasised to the audience the importance of sketching to capture mood and atmosphere. Something that is difficult to capture in a photograph.

Llyn Gwynant, pastel by Jenny Keal
The painting was done with Unison Pastels on Fisher 400 Art paper, which is an abrasive surface and extremely good for creating mood and atmosphere and for portraying reflections. The distant mountain was kept cooler in colour, lighter in tone and without any detail. These three tips will help with the illusion of recession. The autumn colours on the foreground trees also help with this illusion, as their bright, warm colours  and stronger tones stand out well against the soft blue grey background.
If you are anywhere near Llandrindod Wells this week please come along to Art in the Park on Wednesday 22nd August where I will be demonstrating in pastel and on Thursday 23rd August where David will be demonstrating in watercolour. You can even join in and do your own painting of the Rock Park for the exhibition at the weekend.

Pastel Painting Demonstrations

Posted on by
Reply

River Wye at Erwood

River Wye above Erwood, Pastel by Jenny Keal painted as a demonstration at the Summer of Great Events 2011

August is a busy month this year. I will be doing three demonstrations, two of which are free.

  1. 11th August at Erwood Station Craft Centre and Gallery near Builth Wells, as part of the Summer of Great Events. I will be at the station most of the day, demonstrating in pastel and leading a walk to the River Wye to sketch the scene above. This event is free.
  2. 17 August at The Sandpiper Studio on the Wirral. An afternoon in Julie McLean’s lovely studio learning how to portray water in pastel. I will be sharing my secrets on how to achieve atmosphere and recession in your landscape paintings. There is a charge for this session.
  3. 22 August at Art in the Park in Llandrindod Wells as part of their Victorian Festival. You are invited to come and watch me sketch and paint in the Rock Park and to try your hand at producing your own painting. Materials will be provided. This event is free of charge.

If you want to improve your painting, or if you just want to get started, then come along to one of the above events and join in the fun.  The painting above was a demonstration at last year’s Summer of Great Events at Erwood Station Craft Centre and Gallery. We had a lovely sunny day last year, let’s hope it is fine again this year.

Demonstrating at Erwood Station last year.

Getting out of a rut – Misty marsh in Pan Pastel

Posted on by
Reply
Misty marsh in Pan Pastel

Misty marsh in Pan Pastel

The inspiration for a painting can come in many shapes and forms but most frequently it is a combination of atmosphere and light that sparks the fire.

The sparkle of light on water and a gauze of mist lends enchantment to almost any scene.

In this painting the misty effect was achieved with Pan Pastels on a sheet of white Clairefontaine Pastel Mat paper.

The method of applying the Pan Pastel colour with sponges naturally lends itself to soft edges. The water is mainly the paper left untouched but the highlights on the clouds were created with a small Sofft

tm tool which looks like a plastic palette knife with a sponge sleeve and is very effective for smaller areas.

The challenge of working with Pan Pastels, which does not lend itself readily to creating sharp edges, has made me re-evaluate the amount of fine detail I include in a painting and has ‘loosened up’ my recent work. Working with different methods of applying colour is a stimulus that can get you out of a rut.

Go on try something new.

I will be running a pastel painting course in Cheddar next autumn if you would like to learn more about my methods of working.

More Pan Pastels – Monument Valley

Posted on by
Reply

This is another painting that I did with Pan Pastel. This time I used a sheet of white Clairefontaine Pastel Mat paper. This paper has a good tooth which is not quite so ‘sharp’ as sandpaper.

The challenge this time was the warm colour of the distant features, especially the right hand mitten, which would make creating a sense of recession quite difficult. When the painting was almost finished the colours of the two ‘mittens’ was very similar so I loaded the oval sponge with a light coating of white pan pastel and patted it gently over the distant ‘butte’ to push it into the distance.

My family and I travelled to Monument Valley earlier this year to celebrate my 60th birthday. Since a child I have loved cowboy films and many of them were filmed in this very special scenery. To fulfill one of my lifetime ambitions, we hired horses and went riding through the buttes with a Navajo guide. We also went to the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon and Mesa Verde, so we ticked off several more of my amibitions whilst we were there.

Pan Pastels

Posted on by
6

Recently, I’ve been experimenting with the new Pan Pastels made by a US company. They come in flat cakes, and are applied with sponges. The finely ground pigment creates vivid colours and soft, subtle nuances of tone. Blending is easy with the various shaped sponges and Sofft ™ tools which come in a range of different shapes and sizes.

You can combine the Pan Pastels with pastel pencils for the fine detail and the use of colour shapers, especially the flat chisels allows you to sharpen endges. If you like painting pastels onto sandpaper, as I do, you will find that the use of the sponges for applying and blending the colours avoids the problem of damaging your fingers of the abrasive surface of the sandpaper.

You also use a lot less pastel and there very little dust. I am delighted with the way this new form of pastel paint forces me to use new techniques and develop my style in a new and exciting direction.

Visit the Pan Pastel website to find out more and visit their facebook page, where you will find more of my work in pan pastels displayed. Comments welcome