Paper Size

Now, for the most part, I am a plein air artist and I constantly battle the changing light and how it effects a scene. Time is my enemy. That being said, I have recently discovered that although the thought of painting a large painting is very exciting, it may also be impossible for me at this time.

I recently bought eight 18"x24" sheets of Kitty Wallis paper to try out, thinking I could really get loose on a larger sheet of paper. I tried it out on two different occasions and found I had a difficult time covering the whole sheet and still make it work. First, I failed to make the main subject large enough to fill the whole sheet. As a result, there was a lot of foreground which wasn't fully utilized. I can trim it if I want, but more than likely, I will either reuse the paper or try to work it to a point of completion. Second, I'll need to work quickly and decisively.

After doing a lot of less-than-ideal paintings recently, I did a pretty good one today. I find that if I am not able to fully concentrate on what I am doing, I might as well stay home, and recently I haven't been able to focus on painting at all. It had gotten pretty disappointing at times. Going back to a 12"x18" size of Wallis paper today is a good thing for now, and I definitely felt that I was in control.

Of course, being in a great setting (on the shore of Lake Ontario) at a friend's house didn't hurt. I could paint that lake every day of the year.

I think that in the future I will be able to conquer the larger size. I'll just need to be very focused and will have to remember to use the whole sheet when I sketch it out initially. And then I'll work REALLY, REALLY FAST!

Pastels

Currently, I use a lot of different brands of pastels, but started out 4 years ago with a half-stick set of Senneliers. They gave me a good starting point to begin with. Now I simply added to them as I discover which colors I need. I still have some of the original set, in part because some colors are used very rarely in landscape - bright reds, bright yellows... They all look great in the box, but I have some sticks which I have NEVER used. Seems a shame to me.

Currently, my favorite pastel brand is Mount Vision. I was given a small piece of one to try by one of my local art stores (Rochester Art Supply) and I really like the way they worked. They are not as soft and smooth as the Senneliers which are well know for being soft, but they are very durable and seem to be long-lasting. It is my understanding that they have some pumice in them. This is good for me as I can be rough on pastels. They are relatively inexpensive for high quality pastels (less than $3.00 per stick). They are large and chunky. I feel like I am getting my money's-worth with them.

I usually break them in half when I get home, put one half in my plein air box and put the other half in my studio box. I very rarely use the studio box, however. Usually those sticks just wind up going into the plein air box when those sticks get used up.

I tend to think that if I were doing portraits, I might use the softer pastels such as Unisons. They are more soft and buttery in consistency - good for making skin look smooth, but in landscape, I tend to think that leaving parts of the paper showing through makes for a more interesting painting. Also, because I do plein air, I work very quickly and a super-smooth finish is not what I am looking for. My paintings tend to look rougher, but I like that. Unisons are also very expensive.

I do use a wide variety of brands of softer pastels including Grumbacher, Windsor Newton, Art Spectrum and Terry Ludwig. I also use Nupastels for a lot of applications. I like the fact that they are a bit harder and I can get a nice sharp edge with them.

To be honest at this point, I don't really shop brands anymore. I usually look more for specific colors to match the painting needs I currently have. I don't care what brand a stick is as long as it's the right color.

I organize my pastel box by color and value. I can usually find the pastel I need more easily if they are organized like this. Obviously, since I do a lot of landscape, there is a ton of greens, violets and blues.