i bought the wrong paper again and i'm using it anyway
i ordered pastelmat like i always do and somehow ended up with a pad of canson mi-teintes that's way too smooth. the pastel just sits on top, doesn't bite, three layers and it's already muddy. i was so annoyed i almost threw it in the bin.
but i have been working on the same reference for four days now on paper i hate and something weird is happening. because it's not taking the pastel well i have to be more careful, work lighter, actually plan each stroke instead of just smudging everything into a blur. the face i'm doing has more structure than anything i've made in months. it looks like a drawing instead of a dream i had.
i think sometimes the wrong materials teach you something the right ones can't. or maybe i'm just making peace with wasting twenty quid on paper i won't buy again.🙂
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This is such a relatable thing. I've had the same with watercolour paper, bought a cheap pad by mistake once and everything just sat on top instead of soaking in, and I nearly gave up on the whole painting. But something about fighting the material makes you slow down, doesn't it? You stop relying on the paper to do the work for you.
What's the reference you're working from? Would love to see how it turns out, especially if this awkward paper is actually forcing something interesting out of you 🙂
exactly. you put it better than i did, fighting the material makes you slow down. i think i got lazy with the good paper honestly. just layering and blending without thinking.
the reference is a photo by tomasz tomaszewski, one of his street portraits. old man with a cap, lots of wrinkles and light. terrible choice for paper that won't hold detail but maybe that's why it's working? forces me to suggest things instead of drawing every line.