Why I fell in love with soft pastels!
Art has always been my sanctuary, allowing me to express my creativity and find solace amidst the chaos of everyday life. When I became a mother, I was finding that I never had the time to set up an entire paint before being interrupted, or too tired and my art took a back seat.
It wasn’t until I was asked to do a pencil drawing for a work colleague that I realised that drawing was something simple and easy to set up and something that I could leave at the drop of a hat if the kids needed me. Initially, I stuck with simply graphite pencils and honed my craft in creating details and getting the likeness of my subjects. As I improved though, I couldn’t help myself in wanting to develop colour.
Being a painter at heart, I began using watercolour pencils - the best of both worlds. Paint AND drawing.
Roxy. Watercolour pencils
It was a good start, but by now I was following other amazing pet portrait artists who were using soft pastels and I started pondering. The only thing that held me back to start with, was the cost. It was going to be an investment in something that I didn’t even know I would like!
As fate would have it, a one-day soft pastel class with a world reknowned soft pastel artist and tutor, popped up in my town. I jumped at the chance to explore the medium, before making a risky investment. Turns out, it wouldn’t have been that risky after all as I really enjoyed my day….and I think we know what happened next.
So what did I like about them?
One of the captivating aspects of working with soft pastels is their ability to effortlessly blend and fuse together. With just a gentle touch soft pastels seamlessly transition from one color to another, allowing for smooth gradations and stunning color transitions. This quality grants me the freedom to capture the subtle nuances of my subjects' fur or skin tones, imbuing my portraits with a lifelike quality.
Zara. My first soft pastel commission in July 22
Traditionally, pastels have been likened to drawing materials rather than painting mediums. However, soft pastels defy this convention by enabling layering techniques reminiscent of painting. With pastels, I can build layers of colour upon colour, creating depth and subtle tones in my portraits. This versatility provides me with a wide range of possibilities to experiment with textures, shadows, and highlights.
Soft pastels possess a unique ability to create soft, blurry aspects in drawings, imparting a sense of gentle atmosphere and an ethereal quality. This effect is particularly enchanting when capturing the delicate features of pets and people. Through strategic smudging and blending techniques, I can convey softness, depth, and even evoke emotions in my portraits. This creates a visual experience that is not only aesthetically pleasing but also captures the essence and personality of my subjects.
As a mother, my time is precious and often limited. Soft pastels have become my saving grace, as I can create my art even in short bursts. Whether I have five minutes or an hour, I can pick up my pastels and get going. Soft pastels require minimal setup and cleanup, making them an ideal choice for those moments when my children need me.
Me with my lastest soft pastel commission. Rikoh.
In all, I am so glad to have found this medium. And although sometimes I still feel the pull towards the brushes, these pastels are great!
If you’d like to know more about soft pastels, just comment below. After almost a year of using them, I still feel like a novice but I can definitely give you some tips on how to get started if you think you’d like to give them a try!