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Health & Fitness

What They Said En Plein Air

I just noticed that my pastel painting, "Saturday Morning at Millpond," done on July 20 at the first Brighton Paint Out shows the scene on the left side of the Brighton Patch banner.  I painted it from under the gazebo (to stay in the shade) and numerous people spoke to me as they walked around the Millpond, especially families who brought their children to my easel to see the art in progress.  This is what they said:  
"PEOPLE!" was the first thing most people exclaimed because nearly all of the artists who were working that day did not show people, just scenery, and, of course, I was only seeing my own work and didn't know what the other 30 artists were doing.  I tried to capture the busy life around the Millpond as well as the Millpond itself.  
Is that chalk?  No, pastel is pure pigment in a special binder.  I used Nupastel sticks, which are a harder version of soft pastels, so the work is still considered to be done in soft pastel, technically speaking.  I like Nupastel on location because they are less dusty than softer pastels, and very compact.  Go to http://www.prismacolor.com/products/pastels/nupastels.  
Is that sandpaper?  No, the paper is Art Spectrum's Colourfix paper, which is coarse like sandpaper and therefore holds the pastel particles very well without fixative.  It comes in colors, and I generally like to use a color that either matches the dominant color of the piece, or is the color complement of it.  Go to http://www.artspectrum.com.au/colourfix.html  
Do you know we skated on the Millpond?  No, I didn't, and the lady said she swam in the Millpond, too.  Turns out, she's in the historical society which shares and preserves such memories.  
How can I see it finished?  All art is now on exhibit at Art Ventures, 422 W. Main, where the public is invited to vote for their favorite.  Then it moves to the wine tent at the Brighton Fine Art and Acoustic Music Festival on Friday, August 2, where voting continues until Sunday late afternoon and prizes are awarded.  Most are for sale.  
Can they be shown online?  Great idea, which I passed on to the leaders of the event.  
I enjoyed talking to everyone who stopped by that day, and I thank both friends and strangers for doing so!   Since I included "Saturday Morning at Millpond" with an earlier blog, here's "Windy Day at Millpond." It was done at "Art at Millpond"--where Brighton Art Guild members meet on Thursday evenings all summer, weather permitting.  This was done in mid-July with Nupastels on ArtSpectrum paper, but uncharacteristically I chose black paper because the water was so dark.  It doesn't have the swirls of VanGogh's "Stormy Night," but I think you can visualize the wind whipping the water across the surface of the Millpond under the Michigan sky.

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