Tips for Painting Sand with Pastels

'Happier Than a Gull with a French Fry'            8x10         pastel        ©Karen Margulis
available $150

Since I am in Beach Mode this week I thought I would share some beachy posts from the archives. In one of my class series we spent time on painting the beach. I had two questions that everyone asked:

How do you paint sand that looks granular?  
How do you know what colors to use in the sand? 

There is actually a simple answer to these questions.  With pastels we usually work dark to light. But sand is typically a very light value. 

• The problem we often have is that we start painting the sand with a color that is close to what we want or the very light local color. Then we end up with a big area of very light value sand color and it looks flat and boring. Remember....dark to light!  
• So I like to start painting my sandy areas with a darker and more intense color than I really want. I layer the colors getting gradually lighter and brighter. I also sometimes do an underpainting in a brighter bolder color. 
• Then when layering the pastels I use a very light touch so that the darker layers show through. These darker bits are what gives the granular look to the sand. LIGHT TOUCH is the KEY!I will sometimes use workable fixative to fix the dark layer. This adds to the granular effect.

My Cheat Sheet for Painting Sand

 How about choosing sand colors?  Remember that the colors of the sand will vary greatly from beach to beach depending on the make-up of the sand. Coral based sands can be pink or white, shell based sands can be golden or bleached white. There are grey sands, peach sands even black sand beaches.
Once I decide the color of the sand I choose several values of the color so that I can build up my layers making the rich texture I discussed above.

Tips for Painting a Beach

'Tropical Dreams'           8x10          pastel           ©Karen Margulis
sold

It was 17 degrees below zero when I saw the billboard. It was an ad for a Caribbean cruise.  Now this was a well placed billboard!  I could definitely see the allure of a Caribbean beach. After a cold winter many of us are having dreams of spending some time by the sea. In just a few days I will teach a workshop on the Carnival Breeze. I am looking forward to Art Cruise 2016!

It is time to paint the beach!  Even if you don't have a beach trip in your future (or maybe you are fortunate to live by the water) learning techniques for painting the sea and sand and sky can come in handy. You can even apply these ideas to painting other landscapes that include these elements.

I like the challenge of painting a seascape or beach scene because it has it all....water, sky, sand and foliage. Now that is a landscape challenge!  I decided to take the challenge for one of my downloadable demo/lesson. If you haven't had a chance to try it now is a good time! 

All PDF demos will be 10% off this week only! Use coupon code WinterDemo at checkout.

screen shot of my beach demo download

The beach demo is available in pdf format so you can view it on a computer or tablet or print it out and make a booklet.  This demo has 44 full color photos of each step of my painting and 23 pages which include text on each step. These demos are what I would share if I was painting in front of you with even more information because I can take my time and write down all the details of each step. For this painting I have used a Dry Underpainting technique. I share tips on painting clouds, sky, sand and foliage. 

The demo is available in my Etsy shop . Click here for details.  I have 12 demos available and they can all be viewed in my etsy shop here. 

A few sample photos of my painting in progress

Revisiting Diane Townsend Metallic Pastels

'Magic at the Ranch'        12 x 12      pastel        ©Karen Margulis
sold

Are you looking to spice up your pastel paintings? There is nothing like a little sparkle to to spice up an otherwise dull painting.  Metallic, iridescent, pearlescent are the names given to these pastels. It depends on the manufacturer.  I recently rediscovered my set of Diane Townsend Metallic soft form pastels. I say rediscovered because they were lost in my studio and found during my studio clean up.

I haven't used these pastels in awhile but decided to use them for an experimental underpainting. I had an old unfinished painting from a trip to Grand Teton National Park. I had done a gouache underpainting. I added a layer of metallic pastels and sprayed some workable fixative.

close up of the metallic pastel layer

I worked some Terry Ludwig pastels over the metallic layer and the result is a subtle glow which was hard to capture in a photo. I then remembered some other experiments I did with the metallic and water. I will have to try more of these!

'Golden Dreams'      5x7     pastel         ©Karen Margulis 

The painting 'Golden Dreams' was done completely with the set of metallic pastels. I put down a layer of several of the colors and sprayed the painting with water.  I was curious to see how the metallic pigment would react to the water.  I wasn't disappointed.  Some of the colors rose to the top of the puddles and swirled like an oil slick. I tilted the board slightly and let some of the wet pastel drip. I let it dry.  You can see the sparkle of the gold and copper pastels.  

Diane Townsend Metallic set of 12 pastels

• I LOVE Diane Townsend pastels Her soft form pastels are some of my favorites. These metallics are no exception. They are so rich and beautiful.
• The metallic pastels are extremely soft and buttery. They go on like velvet. You need to use an VERY light touch. A little bit goes a long way. They are so soft that they crumble easily. (see photo) If you press down too hard they crumble right in your hand. Of course I am saving all of the pieces to reconstitute someday.
• I now know to use a very light touch but for the pastels that have already crumbled I will use them in other ways....sprinkle dust, apply with soft tools like pan pastels....No pastel dust will go to waste!
• I love the rich metallic colors and will try to use them as spices or accents in a painting rather than for the entire painting.
• I haven't tried to use them for an underpainting with an alcohol wash but since it just occurred to be I will have to try and report back!

Do you like to use metallic or iridescent pastels? Do you have a favorite way of using them? I'd love to hear from you!

Diane Townsend pastels are available from several sources online including Blicks.

http://www.townsendpastels.com

A Fun and Easy Sketchbook Project

'The Tree on Peanut Road'         5x7      plein air  pastel       ©Karen Margulis
available $95

I have been wanting to do this for a long time. I have started to keep a sketchbook! I have started before and never get too far along before the latest sketchbook ended up on the shelf...unfinished.

I hope this time will be different. I know it has been a lot more fun. I think it is because I made it easy this time. That and I had plenty of free time to really dive into the sketchbook.

So how did I make it easy? I simplified my supplies. It seems to be the good answer to everything. When I simplify I am more productive. I chose a small pouch that will hold all of my supplies but still fit easily into my daily purse. There was no excuse not to take it with me. And I took it everywhere while on my vacation. OK I didn't take it on my horseback ride. but it came everywhere else.

sketching the skiers as they came down from their run

My pouch of sketching supplies

I brought the following supplies which gave me the ability to do a variety of sketching from pencil to charcoal to watercolor....even some collaging!

• A set of 12 Derwent Inktense pencils (turns into ink when wet)
• A Caran d'Ache water brush
• A couple of water soluble graphite pencils (cool for washes)
• A couple of thin black pens...Pitt, Le Pen and a Sanford Vision pen
• A small Daler-Rownet watercolor set (I used the brush that came inside the set)
• Pencil sharpener
• Glue stick

Once I did a few pages I was hooked. I saw subjects for sketching everywhere! I can see why the whole Urban Sketching and travel journaling and sketching is so popular. It was such and easy and relaxing way to be creative. And I KNOW that the time I spent observing and sketching will only enhance the paintings I will now do from this trip. 

I look forward to continuing my sketchbook and learning more about this great new (to me) adventure!

Here are just a few of the pages I did in Crested Butte Colorado.

What I Learned From this Week's Adventure

'Mountain Sunrise'         5x7        plein air pastel         ©Karen Margulis
available $95

It is turn around time. I am back from the snow covered mountains and packing for my Caribbean Art Cruise. I am trading snow boots for flip-flops, sweaters for beach cover-ups. One thing I am not trading is my pastel box! I may add a few more turquoises and I will bring my larger Heilman sketchbox but I will never go anywhere without one or the other.

It's one of the things I learned from my trip to Colorado. I almost didn't bring my pastels and if I didn't throw the box in at the last minute I would have really missed some great opportunities to paint. And since we never know what may come our way it is best to be prepared! Here are a few other things I learned.....

The many moods of the mountain

• It's OK to go without plans. I had no idea what we would do other than relax. I always have a plan when I travel so it felt odd not to know what restaurants I wanted to try or what activities we would do. It all worked out and we had great fun horseback riding and getting massages. 
• Be Open. Having no plans made it easy to accept an invitation for coffee from a Facebook friend. Meeting Becky and then going out painting was a highlight of my trip.
• Take time to just be. And observe. I really looked at the mountains and the trees. I studied them. I painted them in my mind. I observed them in different lighting and conditions. I can't wait to paint them now.
• I discovered that I LOVE keeping a sketchbook. I couldn't get enough if it. I even dreamed about what I would sketch next. I'll share my sketchbook in tomorrow's post.

My compact set-up is easy to throw in a carry-on bag. No excuses!

'Mountain Town'       5x7        $95

Another Day to Paint in the Snow

       

I came to Crested Butte with no plans. Unusual for me. I just knew I wanted to see snow and mountains and aspens. I almost didn't take my pastels! Thank goodness for the portability of my Heilman sketchbox. I threw it in my bag at the last hour. I'm glad I did because I couldn't have known I'd meet a fellow pastelist who wanted to go out painting!

       

Becky is a Facebook friend who saw I was in town and and invited me out for coffee. We had a wonderful visit and made plans to get together to paint. She took me to a beautiful spot which had amazing 360 views right from our parking spot. I had to laugh when she said we should walk down the road for better views!

I found a solid snow bank to set down my box. Luckily my case is semi waterproof. I remembered my wipes this time! There was ice and snow everywhere so without an easel I just held my little board and painted standing up!

                                         

We head home tomorrow after a wonderful time. Not only did I get to paint I thoroughly enjoyed working on my sketchbook which is something I've been wanting to do! More on this later! 

Art Lessons from an Aspen Tree

                                      

It was a snow day today in Crested Butte. It was the perfect opportunity to do some plein air painting from the comfort of the inn. A table by the window was a great spot to set up. I spent time just looking out the window at the mountains and a little aspen grove across the street. I sketched them. I painted them. And I just studied them.  We don't have aspens in Georgia so I was taking notes!

I learned some valuable lessons from my morning at the window. The all important concept of Simultaneous Contrast came to life!

                                        

I always thought of aspen trees as being white. That is the local color we usually assign to them. But when we really observe them they aren't white at all. Sure they are a light value but not white. In fact I am finding that they are yellow to yellow green even. Their color was even more apparent because of the backdrop of the snow.....which is closer to true white. (See photo) So the 'white' tree trunks no longer looked white against something even whiter!  In the summer aspen trunks seem whiter against the backdrop of greens. A very important lesson!

                                    

After my morning sketch and painting session Caitlin and I treated ourselves to a massage....another good activity for a snowy and windy day!

   

  

Plein Air Painting in the Snow

I

It has to be quick and easy. Painting outside on a cold winter day is exciting but if it isn't easy to set up and put away it can be a challenge. I am in Crested Butte Colorado this week. The plan is to relax, take lots of photos and paint some. So I brought my smallest kit. I will blog in detail about the kit but I wanted to share some photos with you while I am here.

The top pastel painting is 5x7 on Fisher paper.

                                    

                                    

I forgot my wipes so I had to improvise with a chunk of ice! It was actually pleasant with the sun so I painted 4 studies. It I supposed to snow tomorrow so I will try to write an update!

         

Pastel Demo on Canson Paper...New England Summer

'New England Summer'          16x20         pastel        ©Karen Margulis
sold

I am headed to Colorado for Winter Break but I though we could all use a little taste of summer. I am reposting a demo of a summer scene for your enjoyment.

I thought the painting was finished. I took the final photo and uploaded it to the blog. It wasn't done.  It happens quite often actually. There is nothing like looking at your painting on the big screen to show  all of the issues. So it was back to the easel.  In fact today it was back to the easel 3 more times until I finally was satisfied.

The painting just wasn't capturing the emotion I wanted. It was a beautiful afternoon on Nantucket Island. We came up to the beach and had a view of the distant ocean through a sea of wildflowers. The heady scent of the beach roses filled the air. It was magical.

I decided to remove the beach umbrellas and add more flowers. I softened the sky as well.  These changes helped create the mood I was after. Thank goodness for digital photos! They are so helpful for evaluating a painting. Enjoy today's mini demo.

I began the painting on a piece of 16x20 Canson MiTeintes paper Moonstone color. I blocked in the big shapes with 4 values of pink and rubbed it into the paper with a piece of pipe foam insulation.

Next I block in the dark areas underneath the foliage and then moved to the sky. I layer several blue pastels both warm and cool and dark to light. I tried to get a nice transition from top to bottom.

I work on the clouds layers using pale peach and yellow. I don't use pure white at all. I also put in the band of distant ocean.

I begin putting in the darker greens in the foliage areas and I indicate where the fence is. I end up removing the fence. I also layer some very light value yellows in the sand.

I build up several layers of greens in the foliage area. Because Canson doesn't have a lot of tooth I decide to spray some workable fixative so I could build up more layers and get some texture in the foliage.

I add the beach umbrellas and more greens. I also start to put in a few of the beach roses.

This is where I thought I was finished. I didn't like the texture in the clouds and the cloud shapes were too similar. I also didn't like the umbrellas. They were too small for where they were in the composition. If I kept them they would need to be larger and the painting wasn't about the umbrellas.....so I brushed them out.  I added more flowers and was much happier. (see top photo)

How about summer painting on Uart? can you notice the differences that the paper makes? These two recent studies of done on Uart 500 grade.

'To the Sea Study'         6x8       pastel      ©Karen Margulis
available $75

'Dune Study'          6x8       pastel          available $75

Inspired by a Color...Exploring Red

'Fantasy in Red'        5x7      pastel
available $75

I wasn't sure what I wanted to paint. I was busy packing for a winter get-away with my daughter. We are headed to Crested Butte Colorado for a little  relaxation before she finishes up her last couple of months of student teaching. I wasn't really focused on doing a daily painting but while organizing art supplies to take on my trip I found a piece of scrap paper with a poppy demo. My mind starting buzzing. Inspiration was born!

Some of my red pastels

 Why not play with red on Valentine's Day!  I decided to take the demo scrap and turn it into a painting. It was on a 5x7 piece of Uart so it had potential. I believe the scrap was used to show a student how to create light on a red flower and tree trunk.

the demo scrap

I grabbed a spray bottle of rubbing alcohol and spray the demo until the pastel began to drip. I took a paintbrush and started moving the wet pastel around. The result is below.

After an alcohol spray

Once the pastel was dry I was ready to rework the demo and paint some poppies from my imagination. I took out my tray of overflow red pastels and had fun exploring the various shades of red and pastel brands. It was a fun way to end a day of packing and organizing.

You just never know when inspiration will strike and where it comes from so stay open and go with your whims!

More on Painting Grasses with Pastels

'Enveloped in Peace'            11x14        pastel         ©Karen Margulis
available $165

Many a good landscape painting has been ruined by grass.  It's true!  There is something about painting a field of grass that causes many artists to get carried away.  I do it myself when I am not paying attention.  Three things happen frequently when trying to paint a grassy area.

1. The artist isn't focused and puts in blades of grass randomly. A piece here , another over there and before you know it there are spotty blades of grass with no purpose or direction.
2. The artists gets so caught up in the painting of the grass blades that they over-do it.  Rather than putting in a few pieces of well placed grass...there are too many and not anything left to the viewer's imagination.
3. The artist paints grass that looks like a child's work. I don't mean to sound harsh because it is something that happens without our knowledge. Think about how children draw or paint grass. What happens is that our brain tries to help us paint grass using the symbol we have...how we drew grass as a child. We end up with a fence of rigid rows of grass.

So what can we do to improve the way we paint grasses with pastels?   ROLL THEM!

Using the rolling technique

Rolling the pastel creates much more painterly grasses than when we just try to draw them.  You need to use a round pastel for this technique. Hard or soft will work with each giving a different result. (see chart below)  All you do is place the top edge of the round pastel on the paper and push and roll it across the paper until you get the grass length you need. Here are a few tips:

The results of rolling with some round pastels

• Vary the pressure as you roll to get a broken line which looks more natural.
• Change the direction of your marks so that you don't end up with a line of fence of grasses....this creates a visual barrier.
• Use harder pastels such as Rembrandts and Art Spectrum to get a finer line with more control.
• Use a softer pastel such as a Sennelier or Schminke for a chunkier grass. The softer pastel fives a more textured grass.
• Pay attention where you place each grass.....every blade of grass should have a purpose. I like to use my grasses to help move the eye around the painting.

Have fun with painting grass and don't forget to Roll the pastel! 

This is just one of the ways I like to paint grasses. I share more in my YouTube video. Have a look at the video here and please share it if you like it!https://youtu.be/n-MNHNxm6y8