Pastel

It has long been debated whether dry pastel is more of a drawing or painting medium. Its brilliant colors were made popular by the Impressionists for their convenience as dry and virtually mess-free versions of the rich colors of pastel’s slow-drying and messy oil counterparts. Pastel strokes are applied without any liquid, relating them to the dry technique of drawing. Even so, the effect of my textural pastel technique together with the brilliant colors pastels offer cause me to consider pastel works paintings.

I often feel like I’m sculpting when I paint in pastels, because I layer my colors with short strokes of hatching until the contours of the imagery emerge three-dimensionally. I appreciate the velvety texture that I can achieve with pastels.

My pastel inspirations are Edgar Degas. Claude Monet, and Mary Cassatt.