Trying Pastels

An article in Financial Times about the famous French hand-made pastels from La Maison du Pastel, along with some beautiful works by Libby Stevens and others at the Millwood fall show, peaked my interest in exploring pastels.

I didn’t know the first thing about pastels, so took four 2.5-hour lessons from Libby, whose studio is conveniently located in Leesburg. We focused on still lifes, and she did a good job of explaining the materials and processes.

Once those classes ended, I decided to watch a couple of YouTube videos next, anxious to capture the marshes of my beloved Chincoteague. Was I ever I for a rude awakening, as I overworked and lost any sense of perspective!

Stay tuned as I work to try to learn the tricks of this new pastel trade.