Pastels are my passion with which I indulge my love for colour. They offer the greatest versatility and immediacy in my painting practice.
When I am not working on a collection of landscapes then I am using my garden as inspiration. I love to paint and observe the world around me on a daily basis to build up greater understanding of it. I do not put a label on my style. It is constantly developing as I broaden my painting knowledge and experience.
I run workshops in pastel techniques, landscapes and still life.
I was delighted to be asked by Stephen Fuller and Unison Colour to share with you 5 of my favourite paintings and tell you a little bit about what makes them so special to me and their relevance to my painting practice.
I am really excited to be sharing this blog with you. The view is looking over the western side of the North Tyne Valley, towards Dallycastle in Northumberland.
The first difficulty in depicting a rainbow in pastel is not the rainbow itself but rather the treatment of the pastel dust in the underlying layers so that the beauty of the rainbow’s colours sit resplendent on top.
With a grin I sometimes introduce myself as the mad lady who paints the hill. Roundway Hill near Devizes in Wiltshire and the surrounding fields are my subject as I love to observe them every day.
The aim of the colour wheel set is actually to help you learn the basics of colour theory and not as an ultimate set of colours with which to paint every picture.
Colour is the element of my work which is remarked upon most of all. In fact I have many followers who tell me that they look out for my new posts as they find my joyful use of colour so up-lifting.
Who would believe what possibilities and potential lie inside these neatly wrapped lozenges of colour? They are essentially chunks of pure dry pigment, more intense in colour than any tube of paint.
How we use and hold our pastels will determine what amazing marks we will make. Eventually, with practice and discovery through play, this will create our style.
I feel particularly blessed to be living in the Wiltshire countryside with its huge open spaces and beautiful sweeping plains. Also I feel incredibly lucky to be living in a position where I see this view of what we locally call Oliver’s Castle.
