Pastel Safe Harbor Week 4

I was finishing up my project this week and I wanted to make sure that I had all of my water done, I had all the detail done on my boat and on my dock behind the boat. Once I had that done I started working on the dock in front of the boat which included the crab pots, the pier and the pilings.

First, I worked on the water to make sure that I had all of my colors correct and that I had my reflection correct. I went back in with more color to break up any hard lines in the reflection part of the water because water is not hard so I wanted to make sure that I had soft lines. I made the water a little bit darker up by the pier by using my darker blues and some greens, and I softly blended with my finger this is an important step with water to make sure that it is it looks like water and not glass.

When that was done with the water, I came to the pier in the foreground and I put dark wood colors underneath where the pots were going to be. I used dark brown, some sienna and even some indigo because I wanted to keep it looking like shadows under the pots. On the edge of the pier where there was a possibility of some sunlight, I used a more golden color and I used horizontal strokes with these these colors so that it looked like wood grain. I did the similar thing with the pilings using my my dark browns, my burnt sienna and a golden color for any highlights this time using vertical strokes I followed the wood grain of the pilings, this is important if you're trying to create texture.

For the crab pots I didn't get out my ruler or anything else to make straight lines, these crab pots are old they have seen a lot of abuse and use so they have no straight lines on them

they may not even be square so I just made some rectangular shapes to represent the pots. I used the dark, cool grey for the frames of the pots and a lighter gray for the netting of the crab pots. Please notice I did not go to any great lengths to make the netting straight, even or anything else it's basically just scribbling. I went diagonally from one corner to the other and then I want the opposite diagonal from one corner to the other corner but it's mostly just scribbling. To make the highlights I took a soft white and just suggested highlights you don't need a lot of detail the viewer will fill in the blanks you just need to suggest.

The ropes that went around the pilings I just suggested texture and light and shadow but my strokes followed the shape of the rope, they weren't flat strokes they were curved strokes and I used a soft, cool grey for the shadowed side and on the warm side in a lighter, warmer version for the highlight. Also, into the shadows I used my soft lavender color all the time thinking about what I was painting and that is a round rope so much strokes follow the curves of the rope.

The boards of the pier I just suggested also with the gold color and then some sienna colors in the sun lit area and then with a dark indigo color I created some cracks between the planks and just suggested some detail you don't need a lot, just some suggestions.

The same goes for the detail on the boat the netting that is stretched from the front to the back of the boat I use two colors of gray a darker gray and a lighter gray and mostly just squiggles, again let the viewer will fill in the blanks you do not need to spell it out for them.

I finished up the details such as the railings, I use soft white for the highlights on the boat, and basically just look for places where I could add some contrast or add some interest to the boat there's just stuff on there you just don't need to spell it out, even the name on the back I just suggested with some shapes that suggest a name. In the water I just made some little bright highlights on the top of what might be some ripples. For the ripples around the boat in the reflection, instead of using white I use the soft green and soft blue because it's in the shadow. Around the front of the boat I created some ripples and that's it is a painting is done. You need to finish up your painting the way you want it to look and this becomes a personal preference for the artist so it doesn't need to look exactly like mine but it does need to look the way you want it to look.

Next week you need to bring in something that you want to work on, if you are still working on the boat feel free to finish it up in class if you have problems I will do specific demos on those problems so I will see you in class keep painting.

Pastel Class Safe Harbor Week 3

I didn’t really have much of a demo for class this week because most people who were working on the project were still trying to get caught up or had just started, I will see where everyone is next week and we will go from there.

I did work on my own project a bit. I worked on the water bringing up the color and the reflections. I also worked on the boat and put in some of the details like the port holes and cabin windows and the masts and pipes on the deck, I also looked to be sure that I had

my background covered and filled in places where I missed.

I might finish this project off next class depending on how far others are in the class. Keep painting and I will see you in class.

Pastel: Safe Harbor Week 2

I started this week under painting the water with a light blue at the very horizon. I don't want a dark blue just yet, I just want a soft light blue and my strokes are very horizontal. I filled in the area of the water behind the boat and I went over areas that had the masts, the pipes and some of the extraneous things that were on the boat I will put them in later, I needed to get that color behind my boat so I don’t have to worry about trying to paint around things later on.

I brought the color all the way down to the foreground I even went over where my crab pots will be and back towards the pier behind the boat I did leave some of the area right in front of the boat open and I did added a bit darker blue this area which will be the reflection of the boat in the water. Also in the water I added a light green and some light violet because water is not just blue it has many colors in it so don't be afraid to add colors other than blue into your water, key thing is to have long flat strokes with your pastel. If your strokes are either to”U” shaped or are at an angle, your water will not look flat so keep your strokes horizontal to the top and bottom of your paper.

Next I wanted to start in on my boat and since I don't usually use black in any medium because black can be a difficult color when it comes to blending, it turns your color dingy and muddy, I try to avoid using black unless I have no other choice. I used my dark colors such as my dark grays and I have a dark indigo blue and some dark purples and browns to fill in the dark shape of the boat. I did gently blend these colors with my finger and I went over this several times blending to get a more solid color.

The wheelhouse of the boat has part  in shadow and part in the sun. The top part that is in the shadow I used a very light lavender color, in the part that will be in the sun I used a very light grey, you need to have contrast to show light so in the light area I will put the brighter white color later on.

Part of the problem with pastel is that you need to have a lot of colors to match the colors you see. I needed a color for the tarp I did not have, no color that exactly matched the tarp on the boat so I use a turquoise blue, a little green and some white to mix color close to the color of the tarp and I used my indigo (dark blue) for the shadows on the tarp.

Inside the wheelhouse I used darker blue gray and my indigo for the shadow inside the structure. For the window I used the light blue I had used for the water create the window shape.

The buildings on the pier can be any color you want them to be I used a cool pink for the shadowed side of the front building and to that I added some green to tone it down and my indigo to create a shadow color, I lightly blended them together. The front of the building was a soft pink color, the roof I based in and raw sienna (golden color) and use grays and darker browns to suggest tiles on roof. The taller building I use a dark brown and my indigo to create a color for the shadowed side and a warm brown for the front of the building. I used the same colors for the roof on this building as I used on the front building.

The foreground dock I just used the warm browns, grays and golden colors and lightly blended them together. This is just an under painting for what’s to come and once I had the foreground dock block in, I blocked in the water and the pier behind the boat using dark blues, greens and purple for the color of the water under the pier and the dark browns for the piling and boards of the pier.

Once I had everything blocked in I have now reached the point where I can spray my painting with Workable Fixative. From this point I think I have most of my elements under painted and I will now start working on detail. I hope you can get your painting to this point I will see you in class.

Winter 2015 Pastel Class

PASTEL – Class Project “Safe Harbor” Week 1

Watercolor version of Safe Harbor

I am working on a colored Canson paper. Colored paper is an option and it can be any color but it is best to choose a neutral color such as white or gray or a predominant color that will be in your painting. Since there will be a lot of blue in my painting this is why I chose blue.

I transferred my design to my paper by going over the lines on the back of my design with white chalk then tracing over the lines of the design when I laid it on my paper. The lines are only a guide so you know where you are going, they are not chiseled in stone so if you have to go over them do not hesitate you can always go back and re-establish your design later.

Starting at the horizon, just above the water, I took a soft yellow and worked it on to my paper about a third of the way up the sky, going around some of the larger elements in my design such as the boat house and dock buildings but went over the masts and pipes on the back of the boat. I can put those back in when I am done with the background.

Next I took a reddish orange and starting just inside the top of the yellow and working up

about another third and down about half way into the yellow, I blended with the chalk.

Pressure is everything when you are blending or applying your pastels. If I want a good solid color I press harder, if I want a soft blend like the transition between the yellow and orange, the pressure is very light. I like to leave my chalk blends when I can as opposed to blending with my finger or a stump because it gives a more pastel look to the finished painting, sort of the pastel equivalent to a painters brush stroke, it is the artist’s choice and I also let the subject dictate how much or how little I blend. For now I am just blending with the chalk.

I did a similar thing with the next color which was a deep pink color, blending down into the orange only then up into the rest of the sky. The last color I used was a deep blue such as ultramarine, blending with the pink then going off the top. This gives you a nice transition between the yellow to the blue without creating any green or brown in your sky. I then LIGHTLY blended areas together with my finger being sure to use a clean finger between the different bands of color so I didn’t contaminate the yellow with the blue and visa versa.

I then took a light warm gray and suggested some clouds. This is also another way to blend your colors, just don’t overdo it, you only want a suggestion of clouds.

Finally I took a medium light, warm gray (it should be just a value or two darker than your sky) and right along the horizon I just a variety made shapes. This could be anything from

the rest of the harbor to distant hills or mountains to buildings to whatever you want but mainly it is just random shapes in all sizes to suggest that there is something back there, it doesn’t matter what, it just makes your painting more interesting.

I will continue basing in the water and the boat next time, see you then.