Back To Cleaning Up

I know you all will think me awful, but I still haven't got my studio in order.  I'm still in the process of painting the desk extension thingy that my paper cabinet will sit on and I still haven't emptied the old computer desk and found places for all of its content.  I'm thinking I may go to work on the huge closet adjoining my studio and move it in there.  It's a very nice desk but it's in an oak finish and I'd like to keep everything white in the studio proper.  I could use the top for cutting mats and use the drawers for storage.  Sounds like a good plan to me as the closet is currently being used to store frames.

I forgot to mention that I've renewed my organizational effort because Dors from Dors Art Blog will be visiting us during her US tour this coming August and I figure with all my procrastination, it will take me that long to get everything done!  I have no idea how long it would take if she weren't going to visit but my husband keeps saying "Thank you, Dors!" over and over in a very heartfelt manner!

So, why isn't it already done by now?  Well, I keep finding unfinished paintings and end up going back to work on them (like the egret above!)

I started it ages ago when I first got some of the Golden Open Acrylics but I put it aside to dry then moved on to something else before I finished it!  Now I'm determined to finish it and get it out of the way AND get the studio in tip top shape ASAP!  (Hey!  I heard that snigger in the background!)

New Award, New Painting

"Egret"

Pastel on PastelMat
copyright
Jan Gibson

First of all, I'd like to thank Vic, from Art With A Pencil, for the lovely award. Since I've recently received the award from another artist, you already know seven things about me and seven other artists have received the award from me so I won't repeat them. I do so appreciate the recognition from my peers though. Thanks so much, Vic!

Except for the portrait of Benjamin Capone, I hadn't been painting much up until a few days ago. Then, suddenly, it seems I couldn't get paper and paints in hand quickly enough! lol.

My husband and I went to Hobby Lobby over the weekend and there was some Fabriano Tiziano paper on sale that he insisted I buy. It really was a great deal and I'd never used it before but, it was a pad of colors that I never use so I wasn't going to buy it until he insisted.

So, of course, I had to come home and try it out. What a mistake! I'd picked a sheet of orange (the colors ranged from pale yellow to deep orange) and attempted to paint a bluebird from one of my own photo references. I could not get the paper covered with pastel. No matter what I did, including repeated sprays of fixative and added layers of pastel, that orange kept showing through the painting. What a bummer as I think I did a pretty credible job with the actual painting for a change! Live and learn! That paper doesn't layer well at all for pastel pencils!

Then, yesterday, I got brave enough to try the PastelMat that another artist (Nancy, Reflections From Life Blogspot) and I went in together and ordered from England. I'd heard about how great this paper is and I really wanted to try it but it's not available here in the US at this time.

At first, I didn't like the PastelMat much at all. Since I'd been hearing for months about how great it was, I was extremely disappointed. But, I perservered and eventually found the best way for me to paint on it. It seems to be a matter of filling the tooth to a point where blending is possible. Anyway, the egret above took me most of yesterday (working in bits and pieces of time) to complete but I'm fairly pleased with it as a first effort. The size is 4"X6" or OSWOA sized. Of course, this didn't take much pastel but it did make blending and getting into small areas a real effort!

So, do I like the PastelMat after trying it? A sort of qualified yes. It seems to almost be a mixture of my three favorite supports - PastelBord, ColourFix and Velour - which should make for a super favorite, right? Well, it may become my all time favorite after I've had time to work with it, but for right now, I think PastelBord is still my top choice. Besides, I don't want to get too attached to using it since it's so hard (not to mention, expensive!) to get!