It was Whistler last time and now it’s Plaskett inspiring me to try leaving part of the paper untouched by pastel (see my last blog on Joseph Plaskett’s pastels by clicking here). I’m also influenced by Plaskett to try more colourful paper than I used in Sheep’s Folly (see my Whistler inspired pastel here). I decided to stick with Canson Mi-Teintes paper since it looks like Plaskett may have used this brand. As this paper doesn’t take a lot of layering, I also decided to stick with hard rather than soft pastels, and once again, I chose Holbein.

 

I thought it might be interesting for this exercise to choose a subject that incorporated both red and green and do two small pastels, one on green paper, the other on red. I chose cyclamen in a dark green pot sitting on a light green cloth.

 

It was fascinating to see how each piece ended up looking so different from the other despite me pretty much sticking with the same colour pastels. I’m pleased with the way that they show how the choice of paper colour can affect the outcome.

 

 

 

 

I wasn’t watching what I was doing when I sketched on the red sheet as I ended up using the textured side. But as it turned out, it was a fine accident.

 

Since I had placed the cyclamen on a stool by the window and I didn’t want to look down on it, I ended up working on the floor. Don’t ask me how that happened. I was a bit of a pretzel at the end of the one and half hours!

 

 

Working on the vibrant red paper had my eyes twitching and my mind double guessing the colours I was using until I had the whole sheet covered and toned down. That was something I hadn’t expected. It was quite challenging at first.

Working on the green paper was much easier on the eyes but the challenge there was to cope with the lightness of the paper as the foundation of a fairly dark set up meaning I had a lot of darkening and surface covering to do.

 

 

As with the Whistler inspired pastel, I had a difficult time leaving paper untouched but at least I had given more thought to the plan. In Cyclamen on Green, the green paper becomes the cloth on which the pot sits. In Cyclamen on Red, it’s only part of the blossoms that remain red paper.

 

 

It was an overcast day today and so the whole scene had a blueish cast to it. As you can see, the cool green paper added to the coolness of the scene whereas the red paper counteracted the coolness. The textured paper adds to that effect, allowing more red paper to show through the pastel strokes. I have a preference for working on warm coloured paper and after this exercise, I’m even more inclined towards that proclivity. Mind you, I think the red flowers show up more with the complimentary green/gray around them.

 

One other lesson I learnt yet again is the way our perceptions of what we see can be so unsure. Even with some experience, I hadn’t realized how much lighter the green paper was compared to the red. Here are the papers:

 

 

So the green is definitely lighter than the red yes? But how much lighter? Take a look at the papers shot in black and white:

 

 

No wonder I had such a tricky time getting the background in Cyclamen on Green to darken – I was dealing with a light toned paper! It was much easier in Cyclamen on Red and you can see why.

 

Out of curiosity, here are the two pastels as they look in black and white. Looking at work this way can be an eye-opening practice. For instance, look at how the greenish pastel and the red paper in the background of Cyclamen on Red meld together – talk about being the same value!

 

 

 

I am keen to hear what you think about this exercise.

 

As always, thanks so much for taking the time to read my blog.

 

~ Gail

 

PS. My brother Brett figured out where that view of Paris was from in Plaskett’s pastel. You can see Brett’s comment below my last blog. Here’s Plaskett’s pastel along with a screen shot Brett took from google earth. He even dated the Plaskett pastell to 1971/72 from the completion date of 1973 of the Tour Zamansky in the background. Clever lad!

 

 

 

PPS. Speaking of perceptions, just home tonight from a most thought-provoking movie. If you liked What the Bleep, I’m sure you’ll really like and appreciate People v The State of Illusion. Check out the website and go if you have the chance. Much to think about!