Using Pastel For Drawing
Pastel is a pastel pour dessin -to-use, versatile drawing medium that can create a wide variety of effects. It is very soft and is ideally suited for blending, as well as hatching and layering colors. It can be used on its tip, as in line drawing or to create broad painterly marks, or turned on it’s side and rubbed to produce a textured effect called feathering. It can be layered over other colors to create different textures and tones, or used on its own to make a surface that is reminiscent of a sketch.
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When using pastels for drawing, it is important to practice different techniques to learn how to control the medium. As with any painting or drawing medium, it is very easy to overwork the surface and fill it with uncontrolled pigment, making it harder to erase mistakes later on. To prevent this from happening, it is a good idea to draw your outline lightly in pencil before you begin. This will give you the freedom to build up color and texture more deliberately.
Blending is one of the most important skills to learn when drawing with pastels. It is achieved by rubbing the pigments with your finger or a blending stump to soften the marks you have made. If you are unsure of how to do this, try practicing on scrap paper first to get the hang of it.
It is also a good idea to use an easel when working with pastels, as it helps to keep the work dust-free and allows you to frequently step back from your drawing to see it from a different perspective. If you don’t have an easel, it is a good idea to place a sheet of paper under your drawing board and to put a cloth on the floor to catch any falling pigment particles.