Easing Back into the Studio

I'm trying to get over my recent artistic slump. I have finished cleaning and organizing, and have no real excuse not to get in the studio and play. Today, I decided to just get in there and pull out a couple of recycled pastel papers and see what I could accomplish.

I did this exercise in Stan's class a few weeks ago. It was a good exercise, but I wanted to reuse the paper, since it was Wallis Belgian Mist, which is expensive.

So I rubbed off most of the pastel.

 I used this photo as inspiration.

 I got started with the first layer and decided to use aerosol fixative. I should have taken the painting into the garage to spray it. STINKY!! I closed the studio door for awhile, but it was still smelly, so went out for a few errands for awhile. It was a good decision. The weather was supposed to be nasty today, cold and overcast. But surprisingly, the day was beautiful! Bright sun which really brought out the beautiful fall colors which are at peak here right now. The clouds were as pretty as this photo - like colorful platters in the sky, or as someone said - imagine them as biscuits - to get the shape correct in your painting. I didn't get any photos today but sure was happy to be outside.

First layer with the fixative.

 Here is how I finished the painting. Not a masterpiece, but a good sketch to get back into the groove!

While I had my pastels out on my table and had another scrap of recycled pastel paper, I decided to do one in the style of Mary Silverwood. When I was in Santa Fe this spring, I found Mary's pastels in the Ventana gallery and really enjoyed her work. She worked in a very simple, graphic way. Unfortunately, Mary passed away in 2011.

Here is my attempt to emulate her style: