Summer Pastel Series and... Big News!!

Big news first- One of my recent watercolors won 3rd place at the Artist's Center this month!  Ernie (the dog in the painting) was very excited about his ribbon.  Read about it here and see the painting.  I have to admit that the first thing I did was breathe a sigh of relief- turns out it's worth the work after all!

So I am now on my watercolor hiatus, and pastels are starting to make more sense.  I've officially read every book in the library.  They are more about just getting in there and laying in the right color the first time. There is a lot of layering with watercolors typically.  So thinking in terms of "1 color" to define a shape takes some getting used to- it's almost like retraining your brain. All the way around, pastels are just completely backwards from the working process of watercolors.  But I have to say, I am loving it! The richness of the colors is so exciting.  So here's the first of my summer pastel series.  This is a still life picture I took at a local festival in VA near my Grandparent's house.