Art by Niki Hilsabeck

I thought I might try some mixed media, and wanted to make a good underpainting first so I wouldn't lose my way. It helps to have a road map when I'm tired or distracted. So, I taped down some of my "good" paper-- Arches Cold Press, which I had bought a long time ago for a watercolor class. I've finally come to the conclusion that I'm not much of a watercolor painter, unless it's combined with other media. After I blocked in my pastel "underpainting," I had the urge to tinker with it, adding a little water with a soft brush. The effect was very soft and ethereal, and as soon as it dried, I added another layer of pastel. The paper absorbed the pastel layers and water so well, I topped it off with a little fixative and stopped before I could overdo it. This is a painting inspired by a fountain in downtown Fallbrook, CA. "Ladies of the Water" 9 x 12 Chalk pastel on Arches Cold Press paper ORIGINAL SOLD Click here to buy print: http:/...

"Blue 'Tude" 8 x 11 Pastel (oil and chalk) and China Pencil on paper Click here to buy print: http://www.redbubble.com/people/nikihilsabeck/art/5824481-1-blue-tude-pastel What started as a sketch while I was in the waiting room at the hospital turned into a full-blown learning experience with china marker, oil, and chalk pastel. I like to sketch with the china marker, because it's nice and loose (and you can't erase!) Unfortunately, my toddler discovered that she enjoys sketching with the china marker too. She especially enjoys sketching ON my work, and had a great time scribbling all over the reference photo as well. Of course, I smiled and let her do it-- what else is an artist mom supposed to do? I can always make a new sketch. I rather liked the sketch I had, though, scribbles and all. So, I figured some oil pastel would blend nicely with the china marker, and maybe cover up some of those scribbles. I got a pretty good picture down with the oil pastel and ch...

She's much bigger now-- but I remember that first glimpse on the screen. Sifting through some photos today, I found a batch of the little one's ultrasound photos, and decided to try my own version with pastel. I used the dark paper, because I know it was probably pretty dark in there-- as it was in the ultrasound room, save for the lights that kept squirming around on the monitor. I had to work quickly, while the star of the painting took her nap. Of course, in the few minutes I left my pastels, she snuck out of bed and helped herself to the chalk and paper. I came back into the room to find her working VERY quietly, her fingers covered in pastel. Later, when I went back to work, I noted that not only ha d she made her own little marks on the paper, she made them using the red shade I had used. I had to ruefully smear away some of her marks, but I tried to save a few to show her one day when she is older, so she can appreciate her early artistic attempts. "T...

"Cerveza Time" 16 x 20 in Acrylic on Canvas Click here to purchase or view lare "Looking In" 22 x 28 in Acrylic on Canvas Click here to view prints Both of these paintings were supposed to be done with a painting knife. However, fate had other plans. As I worked in the lights and darks on Looking In, I realized I wouldn't get the texture I wanted on the sari unless I used sweeping brush strokes. The "first draft" of this piece had way too much in the background, so I knocked it back to a flat sky, grass, the woman, and the couple. The woman's clothing and pose were what inspired the photo I took (at the Temecula Wine and Balloon Festival), so I wanted the focus to be on that. This painting went through many "drafts," since I painted it without much of a plan in a quick afternoon session while the baby was asleep. In contrast, Cerveza Time was done for the most part in one long session. I didn't do as much "revisio...

If these three look familiar, it's because they are-- it's the same family from "Three for the Sunset," this time taking a little dip in the moonlit waves. I actually did this picture in class a few months ago, without the moon and clouds. This paper makes it extremely hard to have any hard edges, because it eats the chalk pastel and digests it. So, I used a little oil pastel to give the chalk some sticking power. I've never combined these two before (it felt a little unorthodox), but I think they can work together if used on the right surface. Chalk can only go on top of oil, though-- I wouldn't recommend oil on top of chalk. "Mystic" 9 x 12 Pastel on Paper I added the moon and clouds to give it more of a mystical feel-- I'll have to admit that I can never remember seeing moonlight at the beach; every night I've been at the beach, the marine layer was so thick you could barely see where the water ended and the sky began. The title comes from...

"Sweet Caress" 9 x 12 Pastel on Paper This piece has been a long time coming... In 2007, we evacuated because of the Rice Canyon Fire. As we were leaving, I debated whether to take this statue with me. I decided to leave the angels at the house. Miraculously, the only thing on the property that didn't burn down in that fire was the house itself-- even though it had minor damage from the flames and heat being directly on it. A couple of years later, I noticed how nice the statue looked in the light from the setting sun, and took a picture to bring to my art class. I brought the picture, and my art students immediately began protesting-- at first, they freaked out because they thought the statues were kissing. Then, they said it was too hard. A few students weren't allowed to draw angels for religious reasons, so I gave them a different subject to draw-- I knew these students well and had anti...

Although I loved thecolors and the mood of my original sunset painting (left), I knew it had a major problem with composition-- it looked split in half. So, I got up early and made a whole new painting. The second round went much easier, which shows there is something to be said for having a plan in mind. The figures changed a little, but I was much happier with the second painting. "Three for the Sunset" (image on right) 9 x 12 Pastel on Paper ORIGINAL SOLD I have two more features on RedBubble: "Portrait" can be seen on the "All Things Egyptian" page, and "Mission Creek, San Luis Obispo, CA" was just featured on the "California Sound" page. ...