I’m completely satisfied to announce that my pastel portray, Ballard Bridge, North Pier, obtained a Juror’s Award within the Northwest Pastel Society thirty seventh Worldwide Open Present.

On the awards ceremony on April twenty ninth, juror Liz Haywood-Sullivan mentioned the next about Ballard Bridge:

“There’s wonderful element implied — however not drawn — on this atmospheric portray. The restricted palette of pinks and purples captures a fleeting second in time. The implication right here is an extremely busy scene … and but there’s little or no there. It’s masterfully dealt with …”

See all of the present entries and extra winners.

Scroll right down to see my notes on form interpretation and colour decisions. 

Ballard Bridge, North Pier

This piece is out there for buy for $850 USD. Please e mail me together with your curiosity.

Ballard Bridge, North Pier, 2023, pastel on paper, 10 x 8″

Form Interpretation

Ballard Bridge, North Pier is one in all many work from my Azure & Asphalt collection. These works discover the summary patterns of sunshine on water, streets, and rooftops at sundown. As juror Liz Haywood-Sullivan noticed, these works strike a fragile steadiness between description and implication. They’ve to incorporate sufficient visible cues to make it clear to the viewer that it’s an city panorama, however few sufficient that it doesn’t distract from my main curiosity, that are the summary patterns and the sunshine.

Within the authentic scene (above, left) there was a mishmash of boats within the decrease proper nook. There was additionally little worth differentiation there, which made deciphering the shapes much more tough. Separation of values is essential to defining shapes. I attempted to suggest all that litter with a number of simplified shapes, with out rendering each element (proper). However shapes and types — even these which might be implied — have to make structural sense.

My answer was to wipe out that space and add a strip of foreground buildings on the very backside. With out that foreground to anchor the underside of the image, the water would have felt too open and empty.

Borrowing My Personal Colour Technique

South Pier, Ballard Bridge, pastel on paper, 6 x 4-¾”. Assortment of Loriann Signori.

The supply picture was fairly colorless, virtually solely black and white. I not often depend upon the colours I see within the supply photograph. I choose to construct my very own colour technique. This blue-violet and pink mixture had labored nicely in South Pier, Ballard Bridge (above), so I utilized an analogous technique right here.

A profitable portray has to work on each stage. It will possibly’t have nice colour, however weak composition. Or nice composition, however poor form interpretation. Colour, composition, and form interpretation all must work, and work collectively. 

See extra pastels from my assortment.