Thank you Mary for your wonderful words about the physical nature of pastel particles and how we see them. You are so right!!

I love extreme rough marks, whisper soft particles and everything in between when I admire the work of other artists. The beauty of pastels is that because the medium doesn’t “dissolve” in a liquid, those physical particles–large or small–refract light in such a beautiful way!

Great blog!!

Wendy, yes, there is a place for it all! I think the important thing is to know about different techniques and then experiment with them. That way, ones style evolves and grows – it doesn’t get stuck. Sometimes a new technique will take one from frustration and questioning to a flow and happiness with pastels again!

Dominique, merci beaucoup for your lovely response. It’s interesting that you have made the connection between blending and your lack of confidence with the medium. I think this is true of a lot of students as it is easier to blend rather than layer which takes some risk with colour, value, and mark-making. I love the words of your teacher! Glad you are taking them to heart and already seen the difference in your work. You will find your own way as you work. The main thing is to keep learning AND keep painting!! All the best from Victoria, Canada!!

Thank you for your blog, your smile and useful tips! I just watched your video about blending, As a beginner I tend to blend, if only because I’m not confident about my work, but I have a great teacher who always tells me “don’t blend, let the colours breathe”. I must say I’m much happier with my pastels since I’ve tried to follow that tip. It also gives this “impressioniste” touch the French are supposed to love!

all the best from Lyon,

Dominique

Mary, delighted you have found your way back to soft pastels! And thank you for taking time to go through my blog posts.
Yes, the blending post and video is to explain why I have the preference I do but certainly, as I said, there are some artists who do amazing things with blending!! And you too will find your way and your own artistic expression.

Thanks for your thoughts Nelvia. And yes, I can see how coming from the smooth glazed look of watercolours would have affected the way you came to pastels. I like that you have found a compromise and certainly Pan Pastels will work beautifully for you.
Someday, if you still feel like loosening up, you can put on some fun staccato music and paint along, promising yourself to make a mess!! And just see what happens. Use a scrap piece or an old work you don’t like, one you would have discarded anyway, and play! You can always then dump it in the garbage. But you may be surprised!!

Glad you enjoyed the video Ruth! And yes, tricky stuff blending on sanded paper!!
Great idea for a video Ruth. If you are putting in big value shapes (the way I do), you might think of cool under warm and vice versa – that’s a great place to start! Ruth you can always arrange a free 15 min call with me and we can chat about this: http://www.howtopastel.com/schedule-a-call/

I love hearing about when artists use the blending method. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the matter Rae!