When Old Tricks Become New Tricks
"Approaching" 5 in x 6.75 in mixed media on paper In 2004, I signed up for my first official art class on a college campus. I'd already been teaching public school for a few years, and needed to renew my credential. To do so, I needed to take some post-graduate units. To my surprise, I was informed that those units could be in any subject! I decided to go ahead and explore a life-long love that I'd never spent much time learning in a classroom: art classes. My grandmother was a painter, so thanks to her I'd spent plenty of time making art. When I chose my first "real" art class, I picked one called "The Magic of Pastel Painting." I knew I loved to play around with oil pastels. I assumed the class would teach me how to use them properly. To my surprise, the materials list didn't include oil pastels-- instead, it said to bring soft (or what we sometimes called "chalk") pastels, along with a special type of paper. I p...
