Q. How can I find pastel artists/workshops in my area?
A. A good place to start is our extensive listing workshops in the back pages of every issue of the magazine. You can also check in with your nearest pastel society. You'll also find active pastel communities on WetCanvas! and The Artists Network Forums.

Q. How can I find out more about oil pastels?
A. We do publish oil pastels occasionally (check out Brett Varney's gorgeous oil pastel trees in the October 2007 issue), though soft (dry) pastels are our primary focus. You'll find a lot information in the Oil Pastel area of Wet Canvas. Another good online resource for information regarding oil pastels is the Oil Pastel Society.

Q. Can I travel on planes with my pastels?
A. Yes, so long as they aren't mistaken for bullets, apparently. Richard McKinley shares his tips for traveling with pastels on the Pastel Pointers Blog.

Q. How do I get my work in The Pastel Journal?
A. Our submission guidelines are now downloadable here. (Just scroll down to our title.) And Anne gives you the inside line here. Of course, you can always send us your Creative Spark inspired paintings. This option has the added bonus of a wonderful prize ($150 worth of PanPastels in the April installment).

Q. Which brand of pastel should I use?
A. That's a personal choice, of course. Each pastel brand offers a different color range and has its own unique characteristics. Some are harder, some softer. Some are square, some round. It's about choosing the right tool for the job and your own artistic preferences. Many artists collect sticks from a variety of sources, and use a palette made up of a number of different brands. Since many artists like to begin a painting with harder pastels, and then move to softer sticks as they progress, a useful chart is Dakota Pastels' list of pastel brands organized in order from softest to hardest.

Once you have a sizable pastel collection and you need help arranging your palette, you can find out how artist Richard McKinley does it here.

Q. Where do I buy pastel painting supplies?
A. Why not look online? You're already here, after all. Start your search at Artist's Marketplace. You'll also find plenty of ads for art suppliers right here on our blog, in the magazine and here. Most of the major players have websites these days. Just start with a simple search.

Got a burning pastel question that doesn't appear on the list? I'll bet you do. If you'd like to get in touch with us, please don't hesitate to write.

In the February issue of the magazine ("Creative Spark," in the Art Matters column, page 7), pastel artist Carole Katchen offered readers a Creative Spark challenge: generate visual energy by developing an entire painting with a certain type of stroke. We invited readers to e-mail us with their stroke-inspired creations.

How surprised our team was by the increase in responses since the first challenge; our inbox was flooded with excellent work! Congratulations to Becky Way, of Yukon, Okla., for her winning piece, Two of a Kind (above). “Two of a Kind is a small study, painted with the ‘chunk-chunk’ stroke with half-inch pieces of Ludwig pastels on Kitty Wallis paper, toned with a watercolor wash. It’s a quick push-and-pull stroke,” the artist writes. Way can look forward to some more Wallis paper—her prize is 16 (18x24) sheets of Wallis’ Belgian Mist and Museum paper. Many thanks to Kitty Wallis for her generosity!


Other favorite submissions include Warm & Cool (below, left) by Lisa Fricker, of Lakeport, Calif., in which the artist “experimented with crosshatched strokes to move beyond filling contours, exploring the painting vs. drawing issue that is unique to pastel.” In Turning Point (below, right), by Barbara Newton, the artist “was thinking of wind and movement. The strokes I chose to portray that feeling are loose, open and random to give the feeling of rustling leaves and swaying grass.”


More favorites (below, L-to-R): Le Petit Dejouner de Blu by Brenda Boylan, Sadie by Carol Murphy and Carbon by Maret Webb.
   

Thanks to everyone who participated in our challenge. Look for the next Creative Spark in the April issue of the magazine—coming soon (on sale on newsstands March 11). The winner of that challenge will receive $150 worth of PanPastels.