Today was the first day of school (Liberated! Yeah!). The four kiddos were out of the house, at the same time, for the first time, in a long time. After some administrative stuff and online maintenance tasks, I took out my new pastels again.
For those of you who are not artists, it may be hard to believe just how many art exercises, paintings, etc. get thrown away each year. Some artists have the equivalent to an online garage sale and charge from $25-$100 for any piece that is still available. I love these sales because if I have a wall that needs a little love, then an original painting or sketch for $25 is just the ticket. I have other, better works that I put on layaway or saved for and those are my true treasures. My point is though, that most artists have many, many attempts before a salable or gallery-worthy piece comes to fruition.
Which brings me to my next confession...I played with the pastels again today. It was fun experimenting with the sticks, blending colors, and adding textured to the surface of the oils to get some cool looks but it was 82 degrees at my workspace, which surely caused the sticks to melt a bit (not in a good way). Today's exercise was nothing I'm remotely thrilled with, but a learning experience nonetheless.
Here's a photo:
My middle schooler will be home in five...so until tomorrow....