The Importance of Surface, Pt. 3

On the Edge, 24 x 18 pastel on pastelmat

And now for something completely different! Both the subject, a house on the cliff in San Diego, and the surface--pastelmat--are quite different. This is a more dramatic picture--a modern house and deck chair poised over an eroding cliff with vegetation. I knew I needed a surface that would allow for the details of the chair, but the cliff was equally important.

So I decided to use a new surface, pastelmat, which is really remarkable. It feels very smooth, as if there is no tooth. However, it holds the pastel beautifully and allows for a fine degree of detail, while also being a nice surface to develop foliage.

I used a sheet of white paper and did a watercolor underpainting, which was really crucial to the cliff. It didn't work so well for the house and sky as it bled around the lines. But in the cliff it allowed me to lightly brush on pastel without overdoing it. Interestingly, it is hard to smear the pastel on this paper. I was going to use it for the Summer Houses picture, and realized it might be hard to get the water right, so saved it for this instead.

This is a great new surface for pastel painters. We are very fortunate that so many companies are producing the quality surfaces and pastels that make working in our medium such a joy!