An Introduction To Drawing With Chalk And Pastels

An Introduction To Drawing With Chalk And Pastels Tips on how to Draw With Chalk and Pastels ChaptersThe Rich Colours Of PastelsChalk And Chalkboard ArtExamples Of Chalk And Pastel Uses In The Art WorldChalks and oil pastels are the perfect techniques to create colourful yet soft illustrations, with the first being the paler of the two.Not only are they easier to apply than some other art mediums, they are also relatively cheap and don't create a huge mess. For beginners or those turning to art as a hobby or pastime, the idea of not having to wash up equipment after every use is a big positive.Though cheap and clean, chalk and pastel can be used to create images with a professional finish. While there are no rules on how to use them, you may appreciate some tips on the different ways you can manipulate the mediums. Chalk and pastel techniques can really spark creativity and produce vivid and layered results.Using Conte pastels, you can create beautifully intense colours like in this piece. Photo credit: mbtphoto (away a lot) on Visualhunt.Being thinner and harder than other pastels, they are well-suited to works requiring more precision, like detailed sketches. (If you like sketching, you might also enjoy drawing in ink.)Chalk And Chalkboard ArtYou may be used to the idea of using chalk on a blackboard, but such materials are really inconvenient for artists as they only offer a temporary surface. Instead, artists might like to try applying chalks to paper adapted for chalks or pastels (or any paper with a slightly textured surface).The beauty of chalk is that you can either apply the medium straight onto the paper or you can scrape some of the pigment onto a piece of scrap paper and use the powdery substance as a secondary tool, with each offering different finishes. Chalks often come in a slim format but jumbo chalks are also available and are sometimes better as they aren’t so prone to breaking.While some artists might prefer to work with more traditional materials like paper or card, others like to use blackboards, chalk paper applied to other sur faces (like cafe or restaurant signs and labels) or paths and sidewalks (just one variety of the field known as 'street art').How Chalk can Be UsedIt is hard to walk down the high street without noticing the colourful specials boards that are often displayed outside restaurants in a bid to lure customers in.No longer are chalkboards used to scribble on with white chalk, restaurants are employing artists to come in and create beautiful, bespoke designs and fonts on their marketing boards. This is just one example, among many, of how art overlaps with our everyday lives.Other uses for chalk are on the street, to decorate our dreary concrete pavements - a bit like graffiti art which sometimes gets given a bad name but is more often than not created by very talented artists.Artists across the world have experimented with chalk on the streets, creating huge masterpieces that draw in the crowds. The beautiful chalk drawings created by Dick Van Dyke's character Bert in the original Mary Po ppins movie is an example of this in popular culture.Examples Of Chalk And Pastel Uses In The Art WorldOil pastels are the first choice for children’s picture book illustrator Lynne Chapman, who creates truly stunning images designed for young readers. Not only are her pieces high in energy, they are also of a supreme quality and are explosive in colour.This is Muller's amazing piece of chalk art named The Crevasse. Photo credit: tati01691 on VisualHunt.comAt the opposite extreme, there is street artist  Edgar Müller who was born in Mülheim/Ruhr in 1968, and grew up in the rural city of Straelen in Germany. A talented painter, he enjoyed painting the rural scenes of his hometown until one day, aged 25, he decided to actually draw and paint on the landscapes that were once his subject. He now travels the world creating chalk street art.In 2008, he attended the 2008 Festival of Culture where he wowed visitors with his work titled 'The Crevasse'. Müller transformed a huge slice of a pier into a fascinating ice age scene, which resembled a real life icy crater in the earth.Are you looking for drawing lessons with a tutor?Find a drawing class LondonFind drawing classes in LeedsFind drawing lessons in Scotland