Friday Fun: Painting on Black

'Outside My Window'         11x6       pastel        ©Karen Margulis
available $75

There is something magical about painting on black paper. I don't do it often but when I do I am always pleasantly surprised at how exciting it is. Black is bold. It is dramatic. It allows colors to pop. There is nothing shy about black paper and it can rub off on you. It can make you feel bold, exciting and dramatic!

Don't be shy! Take out a piece of black paper or tone a piece with black pigment of any kind. (more on this tomorrow) Choose something simple and colorful and have some fun.

I used a piece of the new Uart Dark paper. It was introduced at the recent IAPS convention and should be available this fall!  I took some progress photos to show my approach to working on black. Note that I didn't have to block in darks because they were already there! I did use some Terry Ludwig eggplant to restore some of the darkest accents.

closeup

Below is a chart I put together showing a variety of black surfaces available. 

A variety of black papers for pastel painting