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There are any number of techniques for underpainting pastel. Rather than listing or discussing all or most of the methods (is it actually possible to know "all" the ways underpainting can be achieved?). I'd like to talk a bit about watercolor underpainting.

This is not usually the way I choose to underpaint, but it can be highly effective, and I thought it might be helpful to summarize how and why watercolor generally works for me. Some artists seemingly perform little to no preparation for a painting. They may do a thumbnail or small sketch, perhaps even with grayscale shading or value. But when it comes down to putting pigment on paper or canvas, they sketch or paint a few lines here and there and they're off. That's not me, at least not when I underpaint in watercolor.

I prefer to do a reasonably detailed sketch with a pastel pencil, and then loosely apply watercolor in approximately the correct value, with the end result of watercolor covering all of the paper as an underpainting. The example shown here ("Solid Rock") was sketched and painted in watercolor on PastelMat paper (anthracite). Watercolor likely works just as well on other papers designed for multimedia, especially sanded papers. The final layer of pigment consists of soft pastel, which is actually applied in multiple stages (although my photo only shows the "finished product"), so that all or virtually all of the watercolor is covered by the pastel.

The advantages of watercolor underpainting for me include the following:

* Reasonable attention to composition of the entire painting, including sufficient detail for structure, balance and support of the composition. Including this much structure helps me "check" whether or not I'm getting it right!

* Underpainting the entire sheet of paper allows me to examine value, perspective and all of those other artsy concepts. I get to see the "preview" of my painting before I've invested hours and hours trying to correct something that wasn't going to work in the first place.

* The factors discussed above lead to an even more important consideration - confidence. I'm not talking about the sort of confidence that is boastful or proud, but rather then kind that says, "Hey, this looks like it will work! I'm having a great time putting this together!"

So, why don't I underpaint with watercolor all of the time? The short answer is that watercolor works best on lighter color papers. It can and will work on dark papers as shown by "Solid Rock", but value and hue are heavily influenced by paper color. I generally like dark paper, or at least mid-tones, and I also frequently use PastelMat sienna-colored paper. These more intensely colored papers lend themselves to underpainting with an alcohol wash (a topic for another day and time).

If you've got the right paper and enough time, give watercolor underpainting a try! I think you'll be glad you did!

Love where you live - God made it!

Respectfully,

Tom Beasley