29 January 2014

A country road in Jamaica painted in pastel

Home » A country road in Jamaica painted in pastel

Oh my gosh, I forgot to tell you I was off to La Manzanilla, Mexico for a couple of weeks for a week of tango intensive and also a week of semi-vacation (it’s kind of a working holiday). It takes a wee bit of time to settle in and get an internet connection hence the delay in finishing this post and sending it out to you.

Nevertheless, here I am with a step-by-step progression of a pastel painting I did for my gallery in Grand Cayman of a country road in Jamaica. I worked from a photo (an old one!) and here’s the result.

1. Here's the initial sketch in charcoal on La Carte paper. You can see the photo I am working from attached to the board — 1. Here’s the initial sketch in charcoal on La Carte paper. You can see the photo I’m working from attached to the board. The tree is magnificent!

2. The first layer of values. I decided to use really warm colours as the paper was cool as was the scene. — 2. The first layer of values. I decided to use really warm colours as both the paper and the overcast scene were cool.

3. Another layer added. I am still just blocking in the shapes. — 3. Another layer and more colour added. I am still just blocking in the shapes.

4. Here I am defining the tree branches a bit more and also solidifying the buildings.

5. Further defined the tree, added the walking figure, and also the buildings in the background. — 5. Here I further defined the tree (by carving it out using the sky), added the walking figure, and also the buildings in the background.

6. Gail Sibley, "Over One Hundred," pastel on La Carte, 9 x 12 in. The tweaks at the end included making a clearer line between the sky and trees in the background, and adding a couple of directional lines on the road. — 6. Gail Sibley, “Over One Hundred Years- a tree in Jamaica,” pastel on La Carte, 9 x 12 in. The tweaks at the end of this pastel painting included making a clearer line between the sky and trees in the background, and adding a couple of directional lines on the road.

7. Here is the Schminke pastel set from which I chose my pastels for this piece.

8. And here are the pastels I actually used, 13 in all.

Please let me know if you have any questions or any comments about the process above. I look forward to hearing from you!!

As to commenting….

I am using the wonderful Mad Mimi to capture my blog feeds and distribute them to you. One downside is that you won’t find a Comment button. So, if you have something to share, or a question to ask, either reply to this email and I’ll post your comment for you (easy peasy) OR click on the title of the blog which will take you to the website. Once there, click on Leave a reply, and Bob’s your uncle! (That’s a strange saying isn’t it? So I looked it up. Click here if you want to know more. Totally unrelated to pastels!!)

Okay, I’m off to bed. All these days of tango classes are exhausting!

Thanks for being here with me,

~ Gail

Grief And Art – Using Art-Making To Deal With My Sadness And Anger

Creating Art Is Hard Work!!

Using black paper: Gail Sibley, "We Three," Unison Colour pastels on UART black 400, 12 x 9 in - detail of shoes

Using Black Paper For Pastel Painting

Backyard plein air painting: Gail Sibley, "Backyard Hollyhock," mostly Unison pastels on UART 400 grade paper, 12 x 9 in.

Backyard Plein Air Painting – Hollyhocks

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5 thoughts on “A country road in Jamaica painted in pastel”

Desiree
Thursday, 30 January 2014 at 7:14 am

Beautiful! Love to see progression and how others work.

Reply
1. Gail
  Friday, 31 January 2014 at 2:44 pm
  
  So glad you enjoyed it!
  
  Reply
Sandi Graham
Friday, 31 January 2014 at 9:12 pm

Nice demo and painting …tango lessons ! Wow ! You
must paint a tango dancer ! Mmm maybe I will try one

Reply
Laura Gee
Friday, 31 January 2014 at 9:14 pm

What a great demo post Gail, I think the tango lessons have given this painting a very vibrant, lyrical quality to the tree! Keep dancing, you really captured the Caribbean, thanks. I learn a lot from these static shots, I can go back and look at the changes that you’ve added.

Reply
1. Gail
  Monday, 3 February 2014 at 2:24 pm
  
  Thanks so much for your comment and compliment Laura.
  I love your linking of tango to my work! Long may it continue 🙂
  I’m glad you found the static photos useful. I am now pastelling everyday (or hope to) until our return to Canada and will post more progressions on my blog. It’s good to change things up between static and video.
  
  Reply

Gail Sibley

Artist. Blogger. Teacher.

My love of pastel and the enjoyment I receive from teaching about pastel inspired the creation of this blog. It has tips, reviews, some opinions:), and all manner of information regarding their use through the years – old and new. Please enjoy!