In recent blogs I showed a process for using acrylic mono-prints as under-paintings for pastel paintings. Some of them would be considered mixed media art. This is not acceptable for juried pastel competitions. Usually 80% of the painting must be soft pastel.

So, I got to thinking that pastel is pigment and it is soluble in liquids. What if I did the mono-print with pastel. I could liquefy the pastel with glazing or blending acrylic mediums. These mediums are slow drying so that would also be helpful. I dusted my Gelli printing plate with Pan Pastel.

Pan pastels are small dishes of pastel powder instead of pastel in a stick form. Next I applied a glazing or blending medium and spread everything with a brayer.

Then I pressed multimedia paper down with my hand. I tried to press firmly all over the paper and then pulled it up to see what I had.

I tried this with different combinations of colors and mediums. I tried using a stick pastel on the plate but didn't find that to be useful. This is what happened-13 very different prints.

Because this is not a heavy weight paper, it was buckling as it dried. So, I put regular white gesso on the back side of the papers to stop the buckling. One thing I had not considered was that glazing and blending mediums dry with a slight gloss finish. For me, that was not acceptable with the matte pastel I was going to apply later.

I applied matte medium and two coats of clear gesso to the printed side of the papers to decrease the gloss and to provide a tooth for further pastel application. In the future I will use  matte medium to dissolve the pastel so this will not be a problem. Both matte medium and transparent gesso are transparent so I could still see the print underneath when it was dry. I applied the transparent gesso with random strokes so that I would have an unpredictable tooth or grit to the surface.

Now it is time to look at each print to see if a subject is suggested in the pattern or visual textures. Here are close ups of a few of them. Two of them spoke to me immediately but I am still pondering on others. What do you see?

It helps to rotate the paper to see it from different perspectives. It also helps to walk away from it and look at it another day or in passing.

Now to add an image to the prepared paper. Keep in mind that the only pigment I have used so far is pastel.

In the first image above, there is an area that looked like a street lamp to me. The print looked like a night time scene. So, I looked in my photo references for an image that would help me develop this pastel mono-print into a nocturne cityscape. This is what I came up with.

I applied pastel to the surface using pastel sticks this time. I tried to do as little as possible with the mono-print to keep it impressionistic. This is called "Night Lights," and is a 10 x 8 in. pastel painting. This would meet the requirements of a pastel juried show because the only pigment I used was pastel.

This exercise was different from my previous pastels on mono-prints in that I had no preconceived ideas about what would be the subject matter. So, it was an experiment using soft pastel on the Gelli plate, but it was also an exercise for my imagination. It is a little like looking at clouds to see images. I am looking at the papers trying to visualize a subject. Of course, this could also be the beginning of an abstract or non-representational painting. There are a lot of possibilities!

I hope  you found this interesting and that it inspired you.

Until next time,

Sue and Suzy, the artist with a split personality  www.sueflanagan.com

Last time I shared with you my painting, "Want a Cracker." It was done by first making a monoprint with Golden's Open acrylic paint on a Gelli plate. Then I used pastel on top of it to finish the painting. I would say this is about 70% pastel. The rest which is mostly the background is acrylic paint.

I recently did two more paintings using the same method. I started with a violet color of acrylic paint on the Gelli plate and then subtracted paint using Q tips and towels to leave an impression of 3 pears. This is what I printed on multimedia paper.

I added layers of pastel. The first two layers were colors not related to the final green pear color. I wanted the acrylic and these two layers of pastel to show underneath the green. Finally, I added the green pastel color to finish the image. Here is "Lean on Me."

"Wind Blown" is another painting I did with this method. You can see these paintings on my website: www.sueflanagan.com

This method is great fun but you have to be open to whatever may happen. I think every painting should be that way. Be open to possibilities and yes, to failure. You will grow in creativity and your art will progress if you experiment. Always ask yourself, "What if....?"

I am working on another technique that I is very different and exciting. So, stay tuned to see how it turns out.

Until next time,

Sue and Suzy, the artist with the split personality

I am always interested in trying new art products and new techniques. Inspired by pastelist, Dawn Emerson, I used soft pastel on monoprints. The results are unpredictable and more impressionistic. And, it is great fun!

I use a Gelli plate to print images or monoprints. A monoprint is a one of a kind image.  A Gelli plate is a soft gelatinous plate. Most art stores sell these plates.  You can put ink or paint on the surface. I use Open Golden acrylic paint. In this experiment, I drew an image into the plate and then I printed the image on printmaking paper. Here is an example of spreading paint on the surface and then placing the paper on top after you have drawn an image into the paint. Even though Open acrylics dry slower than regular acrylics, I had to be quick with my drawing before the paint dried. I used Q tips and rags to remove paint to draw a parrot.

Here are the first two prints. The first picture is the initial print and the second is called a ghost print because it is the second print from the same paint. I did not apply more paint before I printed the second image. Do you see why it is called a monoprint? No two images are the same.

I felt I could do better with the drawing so, I cleaned the plate and applied more Open acrylic paint. I drew the parrot again. Then I printed it on paper and this is what I got the 3rd time. I didn't have enough paint on the plate this time for a ghost print.

I decided that I liked this image. I used it to apply pastel. Printmaking paper is smooth so it won't take a lot of layers of pastel. In the future, I will put a pastel ground or transparent gesso over the print when the acrylic paint is dry. That will give me more tooth to grab the pastel. Make sure you use a transparent ground or you will not be able to see the print. Here is the final painting, "Want a Cracker."

Most of the background is acrylic. You can see comb marks in the paint. I used a soft rubber tool to make those marks. You can buy this tool in most hardware store paint departments and in art supply stores. Be careful not to use anything sharp because if you put a dent or scratch in the plate the mark will always show up in your future prints.

I have a couple of more paintings that are done with this method and I will share that with you in future blogs. Please visit my website at www.sueflanagan.com

Until next time,

Sue and Suzy, the artist with the split personality