Saturday Painting at the MAC, Black Surface

Today I went to the MAC to paint with the group. Bill had asked me to come and spend about 15 minutes talking about pastel papers and grounds. Then I did a pastel painting on one of my homemade surfaces.

I've been intrigued by numerous artists online who like to do what I call, "back alley" scenes. This was from a photo I took in Powell, Ohio.

"Traffic Jam -Stop or Yield?", 6"x8", pastel

I really enjoy working on black surfaces for both pastels and oils. This one was a piece of museum board that I coated with my mixture of black gesso, matte medium and pumice. I like the texture I create with this mixture, as you can see the brushes strokes which remind me of a woodcut.

Below are process shots along with my photo and thumbnail.