Art by Niki Hilsabeck

"Party Pack" 18 x 24 Pastel on paper Click here to buy print: http://www.redbubble.com/people/nikihilsabeck/art/6883735-1-party-pack-pastel More stylized pots... this piece was about working big and enjoying the medium of pastel. I used another reference photo of some Ancient Egyptian pots, and knew that for this piece I wanted to play with different red and green based hues (particularly scarlet and teal). I have an extra soft set of pastels, and those seem to work best with these bright color combinations. The focus on color took away from some of the value (lights and darks), which gave it more of a flattened look. Normally I would feel the need to work those values back in, but I knew I would lose that emphasis on color if I did so. The colors and stylized look of this piece made it fun to work on, because it has a retro feel to it. It was also a chance for me to try out my extra large Canson watercolor paper-- I liked the first block I bought so much (which was 12 x 18)...

"Winter Meeting" 12 x 18 Chalk Pastel on Paper Click here to buy print: http://www.redbubble.com/people/nikihilsabeck/art/6417412-1-winter-meeting-pastel Click here to see more of my animal themed art: http://artbynikihilsabeck.blogspot.com/p/fauna-i-animals.html I tried this subject earlier on a small piece of paper, and between the tiny size of the paper and the bluntness of the pastels (I don't use the pencils too often), there just wasn't enough room. I've always liked this idea though-- birds at sunset in Oceanside, California, on one of those winter days when there are more birds than people on the beach. So, I decided to give it another try with large Canson watercolor paper and "winter" colors, which for me are gold and purple (at least at the beach!) Instead of trying to realistically copy the photo, I went for a looser approach, and did only a little smearing at the end. I tried to keep the colors in the water broken, with harder edges, and the...

"Clearing" 12 x 18 Pastel on Paper Click here to buy print: http://www.redbubble.com/people/nikihilsabeck/art/6314102-1-clearing-pastel I used to have a brave motto for myself when it came to painting: paint big or go home. If I had to resort to something as small as 9 x 12, it was because I was out of the bigger stuff. In recent months, particularly once I began painting regularly, I've had to cut my paintings down in size. Between time constraints, tiredness, and lack of space, I could only go for the big paper or canvas when I got the rare opportunity to spend a few hours painting at a time. Painting small has its benefits-- it takes less time (in theory at least), and doesn't require as much energy for me to cover the paper with the media. It has a big drawback for me too though: I end up painting much tighter than I originally intend to, and end up squinting over that small paper or canvas, trying to get my details straight. With this issue in mind, I recently b...