001 – Vincent’s Marsh – 27 Minute Artist

Let’s Paint Alaska – 5 minutes from Gina’s front door

Potters Marsh was my proving ground after I had knee replacement surgery. I took my first long walk along the boardwalks at Potters marsh. It was a brisk August day and walking hurt, but I was upright, I was moving, I was ALIVE.

Painting this scene is a way for me to celebrate that memory of being able to walk again.

Copying Vincent Van Gogh’s style using pastels translated into making “commas” with the strokes. Super easy, really forgiving. If you put a stroke in the wrong place or want a different color, just go over it with another choice. This is one of the best formats for getting used to soft pastels. If you are new to the medium or don’t have many colors, try this Van Gogh method.

Supply List:

Black sanded pastel paper taped or stapled to a foam board. Mine was 9” x 12”
Soft pastels in landscape colors. (oil pastels will also work) I used:
Purples: Terry Ludwig Eggplant (extremely dark purple), a muted medium purple
Blues: periwinkle, colonial blue (medium), sky blue, light blue or light turquoise, deep blue green
Greens: very dark green, Sap green, olive green, medium value veridian, pale muted green, chartreuse
Browns: medium brown, terra cotta
Whites: variety with tints of grey/lavender, pink, yellow