The Pastel Journal Spring 2021

As a medium, pastel is well suited to innovation, and when it comes to illuminating this versatility, New York artist Bill Creevy is, literally, the man who wrote the book. His 1991 publication, The Pastel Book (Watson-Guptill), is a text that inspired many artists who’d never used pastel to give it a try. It also brought much needed affirmation to artists who were currently working and experimenting in the medium. We were saddened to learn, in December—as we were putting the finishing touches on this issue—that the artist had passed away from COVID-19. In recognition of Creevy’s important contribution to pastel, the Pastel Society of America honored the artist by naming him to its Pastel Hall of Fame in 2011. Recalling that induction ceremony, artist Richard McKinley, president of the…

The large urban bay area in southern China sometimes known as the “Greater Bay Area” is composed of nine cities, including Zhuhai Xiangzhou, Hong Kong and Macau. The region’s population exceeds 70 million and is rich with its own cultural flavors and traditions. One of the newest trends within the region’s fine art community is a fascination with pastel. The Zhuhai Xiangzhou Pastel Alliance, a member of the International Association for Pastel Societies (IAPS), successfully held an international online exhibition in 2020 and plans to host another this year. “The Alliance has been authenticated by the Xiangzhou Federation of Culture and Art Department (Zhuhai Province), recognizing soft pastel as a painting medium along with other fine art classifications, including performing art and literature,” says the organization’s president, Xiaohui Zhang. “Thus,…

5 Pastel Color Palettes for Florals Want to capture the vibrancy of your favorite flowers? These palettes make color decoding a cinch. artistsnetwork.com/go/pastel-florals An Underpainting Can Perk Up Your Color A complementary underpainting lifts monotonous “real” color out of the doldrums. artistsnetwork.com/go/underpainting-perk Capture the Romance of Light & Color In this pastel painting demonstration, artist Desmond O’Hagan creates contrasts that lead to dramatic results. artistsnetwork.com/go/pastel-romance…

DO I REALLY NEED ONE? Thinking pragmatically, there’s a greater chance for sales, commissions and exhibition invitations when people who encounter your work feel they understand it. As a marketing tool, an artist statement can help critics, writers and curators prepare articles, reviews and exhibition catalogs. Your statement can be integrated into cover letters, press releases, website posts and grant applications. In short, it’s important. USE YOUR OWN VOICE Lastly, stay clear of over-intellectualized babble. Although many artists vehemently criticize the language of “artspeak” that’s used in art criticism, some believe that their work won’t be taken seriously unless they imitate what they despise. Instead, write in a way that feels authentic to your own personal voice. Caroll Michels (carollmichels.com) is a career coach, artist-advocate and author of the book…

• Don’t name artists who have influenced your work. The statement should be all about you. Dropping names only opens the door, valid or not, for the critique that your work is “derivative.” • Don’t use weak phrases that reflect insecurities or tentativeness, such as I’m attempting or I hope or I’m trying. Embrace with confidence that your work is achieving what you set out to do. • Do keep in mind that people have a fairly short attention span, so keep your statement brief and to the point. If it’s too long it will go unread—about 40 to 60 words should do the trick. Check out the statements on this page for examples of writing that’s both energetic and succinct.…

The work of jurying is, to be sure, a job of evaluation. When viewing a work, a juror will consider the artist’s handling of color, value and composition, and assess how well an artist utilized the medium, the level of draftsmanship and the painting’s overall presentation. Although not easy, this initial review is, in fact, the less demanding part of the work of jurying. Much harder is what comes next—after narrowing down the entries that have succeeded by these foregoing criteria. From this point on, the process takes on more subjectivity. Now a juror is determining which pieces have the most impact; which demonstrate a level of sophistication or originality that sets them apart; and which—for whatever reason—grab one’s attention and won’t let go. A wise artist once told me…