Playing with Pastels

In my Friday class we are exploring different types of underpaintings we can choose as a beginning for our pastels. Some of the benefits of using an underpainting are:    - It creates unity in the painting    - It establishes mood    - It helps you secure your values It takes a while to get used to this technique, but you can see in the example above that Sandy's painting is off to a good start. The Monochromatic Underpainting above is good for moody paintings and atmospheric effects. The secret is to choose at least three values of one color to lightly block in the painting. Then, set the color with a wash of rubbing alcohol applied with a brush. Click here to see a monochromatic underpainting demonstration. In this week's class I will demonstrate a Complementary Color Underpainting! Judy PS I really enjoyed the opening of CT Pastel Society's Renaissance in Pastels   on Sunday. Artist, Deborah Quinn-Munson did a talk about all of the artwork in the sh