Art by Niki Hilsabeck

"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...

There are times when I want to paint a little more realistically, or I have a definite image or concept in my mind that I want to explore. And then there are times (like last night) where I'm so tired, I don't know what it is I want to paint. Add to that my personal need to vary my subject matter and approach every few days, and it makes for some frustrating late night decision-making. I knew I wanted to stay away from focusing on a single object (or pair of objects). I thought I might try a place, only I didn't have a clear idea of what I would like to represent in my painting. Then, I sat down in front of my pastels-- the extra soft chalk ones-- and noticed all the beautiful greens. I don't get around to painting much with green, having somewhat of an addiction to blues and purples. I remembered a photo I had taken of a small forest in Germany, which was almost entirely green. I decided I would try it with the oil and chalk combination, and began blocking in grass and...