 |
| American Goldfinch by Jackie, oil pastel on black paper |
Wait, did I say "paintings?"
Yes! Pastel artwork is generally considered a painting, not a drawing. Did you know that?
 |
| Dark-eyed Junco or Snowbird, oil pastel on black paper |
These portraits of backyard birds are first lightly sketched on 9" x 12" black sulfite paper using either black or white soft pastel (which can be brushed off easily with a soft cloth as the sketch is being adjusted).
 |
| Rose-breasted Grosbeak, oil pastel on black paper |
 |
| Northern Cardinal, oil pastel on black paper |
 |
| Black-capped Chickadee, oil pastel on black paper |
Since our intent was to learn how to work with oil pastels, we did not want to spend all of our time attempting to draw anatomically correct birds. So a shortcut was available.
First, artists chose a photo of a bird from my large file of resource photos (from calendars). They could use the photo to observe and draw their bird freehand, or, with tracing paper, they could trace the basic outline, eye placement, and main markings of the bird.
Then a piece of carbon paper was sandwiched between the tracing paper and the black paper and the bird was retraced onto it.
A natural element, such as a branch, was also sketched in the scene for the bird to perch on. The background was left black.
Now artists selected a pallet of oil pastel sticks to be used for the painting. They held up each possible color to compare to the resource photo. Once chosen, this pallet was kept until the painting was finished.
Artists learned that oil pastels can be blended, mixed to make new colors, and used lightly or heavily to create shadows, highlights, and textures.
If you have a set of oil pastels that you would like to get to know better, give this little bird portrait a try. You will likely be pleasantly surprised! These samples were painted by adults, but I have also had great success with teens and children (ages 8 and up).
