Pastels

Littlek, it looks like you've inspired Piffka too.

I found an old box of chalk...lots of little pieces, kind of crumbling...I'll have to buy some more chalk before I can get started.

Actually, as RJB suggested, i find it easier to use broken bits of chalk.

I'm missing a lot of colors and the chalk is over 20 years old. I think it's time to replace them.

oh yeah, piffka, that plant in the foreground isn't a water hyacinth.

colorbook - Well, ok... hehehe.

So, i added the birds. Not such a good idea. Looks kind of cheesy.

Hmm, I like the idea of the birds in the sky. Are they too detailed? Maybe if you abstracted them more... y'know, just wings. That's mostly what you see with a bird anyway. I like the bird in the middle the best.

I'm so pleased to see it in the slightly smaller format. I can see it all at once on my screen instead of having to scroll up & down. The design is great and I think you're really talented.

I wonder if I could take out the other 2 birds.... I drew them in in pencil. It might be tricky to make them go away. I'll try with the heron. I'm already drawing a big detailed heron from the original photo I went from.

I'm addicted!

The birds do seem to make the picture seem too busy. Your center point is on the lilly pads and the birds draw away from it. In art always remember
"less is more."

damn. I'll try to take them out.....

Yikes, go, piffy, even your flails will be interesting, to you and us.

Yikes, I am smiling as we all try.

In our gallery we have some perfecto watercolourists and, a very abstract painter plus this and that... and, next month, our very rigorous bronze sculpturer, this next show, ohmigod, she is doing vinyl tubing and bronze. Well good, wake up the room.

Well, really I am excited about the show after that, the Dog Show, with about 35 people exhibiting. Too bad I haven't gotten the gallery on web.

Pastels
littlek - don't try reworking this particular painting. Start over altogether. Reworking may well kill it right down dead. Try the exact same scene with attention to the points people have raised, especially the rocks - a bit less rounded, I think.

Osso - it's NEVER too late for getting your gallery online!

Good idea Tomkitten!

The problem is I have a hard time doing the same thing more than one time....

Pastels
Yeah, it can get pretty boring doing the same thing over and over , but that's how you build discipline, I guess.

Also, each time you do it, it will be different - hopefully, improved - in some respect.

Further, each time you do it, you'll become more familiar with the handling of your materials, more comfortable with them, and more able to get the results you want from them.

littlek -
It's good for your "art brain" if you work from life. If you get the chance set up a still life or go for a hike with your art gear.

I try to avoid getting into critiquing the work of emerging artists. I'm in the business of selling art supplies and I think it is cool that I have a number of very professional artists shopping at my stores. I have a LOT of amateurs (many of whom spend more than the pros). We've got Bob Ross stuff and even "Paint by numbers."
My attitude is that creating art, at whatever level, can be very satisfying. We fund a START*ART program that gets that notion into places that it might not otherwise be: housing projects, nursing homes etc.
Anyway, littlek, I would get rid of the bird on the left (too heavy) and the one on the upper right. I would leave the one in the middle.

BTW. Fixative MUST be applied to soft pastel work IMO prior to framing. If you don't, the dust will continuously fall off the paper and settle at the bottom. Yes, many fixatives will dramatically change the colors. You should experiment with them before spraying a finished piece. Sennelier, from France, is supposedly better but at $16.95 per can...
Hair spray does work. I don't have enough hair left to ever be in that aisle at Kroger, assuming I did ever know about the price of hair spray. The problem is that there are all kinds of other things in hair spray (perfumes etc).
You are doing well! -johnboy-

Pastels
Littlek - the crane is really good; its wings are just right.

littlek....I dont know whether you are using a pastel paper in a medium tone for your work? I always paint on a toned canvas because otherwise if one misses even a tiny area, the white shines through and is very distracting.....

I think you could use a stronger contrast on the centre of interest
in both works....If you look at the photo of the crane, it has extreme lights and darks....white and black mixed with blue under the far wing.......If you add a little of both, it will give your subject more volume and separate it from the background....

That's IMHO....at least what I would do! Throwing in my two cents!

hey littlek...great job! Im very happy to see you get right into this and start going to town with it, lovely so far, keep up the good work!

Gosh, where are all my pastels??? I think I know but, its been SSOOOO long.

I had to do the half pic in art classes myself and always thought it a fabulous way of looking at things. Unfortunately, the only one I have left is from photography classes where we had to do a paper negative/paper print each 1/2 beside each other type of thing. Oddly interesting, but I think due to our visual nature alone it works very well.

Okay now, I took Bob Ross painting classes, I even have a bunch of them hung up. I laugh at them all the time because people actually like them...it just strikes me funny because of what they really are now that I see everything thats actually missing and what little bits of great 'happyness' are around and about in them. In a way they are very 'homie' looking and feeling and that I do appreciate...and heck a chuckle is fun too. I also like to give them to people, if someone really likes one..heck..here ya go, enjoy. Its all about what strikes your fancy and makes you happy aint it?