Pastel and Plein Air Class Schedule

I am happy to announce that I will be teaching pastel painting this summer.  I love sharing the knowledge I have gained over the years, and teaching has given me the opportunity to spread that joy to a wider audience.  If you would be interested in learning about painting in pastel, please consider signing up for one of my classes.

In Pastel Painting I, I teach the basics - from testing papers and a wide variety of pastel brands, right on through to framing techniques, along with everything else in between.  These classes meet on five consecutive Monday evenings from 6:30 - 8:30 pm, July 20, 27 and Aug. 3, 10 and 17th.

Pastel II is for those of you who have some experience with pastel, but would like to experience pastel in more depth by trying new techniques.  Classes will take place on Thursday evenings, 6:30 - 8:30, July 23, 30, and August 6, 13 and 20th

Lastly, I will be teaching a beginner's class in plein air.  If you've ever thought you might like to try painting outdoors, on location, but felt unsure about what to expect, consider joining me on Saturday, July 18th and July 25 as we venture outside together.  All mediums are welcome.

All classes are through Irondequoit Community Education.  Their course description brochure will be up on-line any day now.  Click on the link to be directed to their home page.   Irondequoit Community Education or contact Barb Reardon at (585) 336-3014 for more information.

Summer is the perfect time to try something new.  I hope you'll consider learning with me!

Pink Flowering Crabapple

"Pink Flowering Crabapple"  -  4 x 6"  Sold

I love the colors of all of the trees that are in bloom here in May - every shade of pink and white.  The crabs are especially beautiful, but are so short-lived here.  I had to paint at least one!

Unfortunately, due to work and other commitments, I had to do this one after dark in the studio, from memory.

I'd have rather been out on site, but as long as I'm painting, I'm happy.

Click on the link below for more information.
My Etsy Shop

"Over-Look"     pastel, 8x10"

I did this painting as a demonstration for one of the art groups I belong to.  I love going up to the shore of Lake Ontario.  I always find something of interest there.  I enjoy just watching the water!  It's no wonder that I chose this particular scene to paint.   SOLD

Pastel Painting Classes

Last summer I began to teach pastel painting through Irondequoit Community Education.  I have presented it in the fall and winter session too.  It has been a wonderful experience which I have thoroughly enjoyed.  I am glad to announce that I will be teaching it again this spring, beginning on April 20th.

This class is geared toward all skill levels and encompasses a wide variety of subjects as they pertain to pastel painting.  It is a fun learning experience and if you have ever wanted to try pastel, but weren't sure how to get started, this will be right up your alley!  I include everything I can think of, starting with choices in paper and pastel brands, techniques and how to apply pastel, all the way to how to frame a finished piece.

If you'd like to learn about this exciting and versatile medium, I hope you'll consider taking my class.  You can call Irondequoit Community Ed more info at (585) 336-3014, or take a look at the course catalog online at http://www.eastiron.org/news/adulted.htm (scroll down the page until you come to the link)

Sultry Sunset

"Sultry Sunset" - pastel  8x10

The winter has been brutal this year.  Never-ending snow and the temps have been in the single digits for what feels like weeks.  There is no place left to put the new accumulation of daily snow.  I needed a break from it all, so my mind wandered off to a late summer evening where the humidity is thick and juicy, making the distant trees look blue.  The weeds are tall and dry, grasses are still lush.  The sky is a warm salmon pink.  Off in the distance crickets chirp.

I know those days will be back again before I know it.  Six more months to go.

This painting was done from my imagination in the studio.  Too cold to go outside.

Busy, Busy, Busy!

"Lakeview" -  11x14", pastel SOLD  
Pat Rini Rohrer Gallery, Canandaigua, NY

Holy cow!  I have a lot shows coming up over the next month and a half.  Been working like crazy and been painting up a storm.  I like being busy, so it's all good.  I might just relax during January though.  I think I'm going to need it!

Here's the list of shows for the rest of November and December 2014.

ARTFUL HOLIDAYS

Livingston Arts

4 Murray Hill Drive, Mount Morris, NY 14510 - just east of Letchworth

This boutique-style show and sale is held in the New Deal Gallery.

Now through Fri., November 11^th -14^th, 12:00pm – 4:00pm

Thurs., November 13^th, 12:00pm - 7:30pm

Saturday, November 15^th, 11:00am – 3:00pm

For more info go to www.livingstonarts.org

HOLIDAYS AT THE GALLERY

Pat Rini Rohrer Gallery

71 South Main St., Canandaigua, NY 14424

The gallery is filled with incredible art as well as holiday items.
November 15^th – January 4^th    

http://prrgallery.com/

Show and Sale at the Mall at Greece Ridge Center

Suburban Rochester Art Group

Located in the Mall near Macy's and Old Navy

Fri., Sat. and Sun. - November 21^st – 23^rd

http://suburbanrochesterartgroup.weebly.com/

CANDLELIGHT CHRISTMAS SHOW AND SALE

Morgan Manning House

151 Main Street, Brockport, NY 14420

The beautifully restored mansion hosts this annual holiday show and sale just in time for the holidays.

Fri., December 5^th,10:00am - 9:00pm and Sat., December 6^th 10:00am - 5:00pm

http://www.morganmanninghouse.com/

GREECE OLYMPIA H.S. MUSIC BOOSTERS CRAFT SHOW

Greece Olympia High School, 1139 Maiden Lane, Rochester, NY 14626

I am supporting my alma mater by participating in this show for the first time.  I'll be in the cafeteria, Booth #49

Saturday, December 13^th, 10:00am – 4:00pm

http://www.greececsd.org/olympia

Pastel Painting Classes

I probably should have put this in here a long time ago, but better late than never.  I am teaching a class in pastel painting starting this Monday, September 22 at Irondequoit Community Education.  I will cover all things to do with pastel. We will meet for 5 weeks.  If you are interested, please click on the link below or contact me at cmsavage31@gmail.com.  Hope to see you there! www.westirondequoit.org/community-education.htm

Summer Vacation Paintings: Up-Close and Personal

Thought you might like to see the paintings I did over the summer individually.  Click on the images to see them even larger.

"Spring Creek" pastel, 9x12

"Chasing the Clouds Away" pastel, 8x10

"Marsh View" pastel, 5x7

"Marsh Memories" pastel, 5x7

 "Pond Study" pastel, 4x6

"Changes" pastel, 8x10

"Cool Day at the Beach" pastel, 8x10 SOLD

"Beach Walkers" pastel 4x6 SOLD

"It's Cool In The Shade" pastel , 5x7

"Irondequoit Creek in Summer" pastel, 8x10

What I Did On My Summer Vacation 2014

What I Did On My Summer Vacation

This summer was really wonderful for me as an artist.  It was beautifully cool for the most-part, but pretty rainy.  Despite working at summer school, I still got out to paint as often as possible and was motivated to do some studio work when I couldn't work outside.

As a result, I managed to get a lot of work done, and even framed!  This is a photo of  the cumulative work from over the summer. I am very pleased by the volume and quality of the work. I am also a bit down in the dumps because I am back at school and my time and energy will be devoted to that.  I wish I could keep the momentum up, but realize that won't be possible to do both.

I will keep plugging away at it though, and will paint as often as my time and energy will allow, even if summer vacation is over.

Cool Day at the Beach

Cool Day at the Beach  -  pastel, 8x10" SOLD

Well, summer is definitely winding down around here.  In a couple of days, the kids and I will all head back to school.  It's been a great couple of weeks and I was able to paint as often as I wanted to.  Truly felt like heaven to me.

The day I painted this was beautifully clear with a cool breeze coming across the lake from Canada.  Those distant  clouds came marching closer and closer until they filled the whole sky.  It didn't matter.  The colors of the sky and the water were fantastic; rich and pure.

Unlike some days when I head up to the beach in the summer, it was pretty deserted.  Only a few souls were brave enough to go into the water.  Most people there were content to just hang out on the sand.

Later, after it was dark, I decided to do a smaller version of the same scene based on the painting I did en plein air.  Both were such a joy to paint.

Beach Walkers  -  pastel, 4x6"

"Cool Day at the Beach"
pastel, 8x10"
sold


"Beach Walkers"
pastel, 4x6"
sold

Irondequoit Creek In Summer

Irondequoit Creek in Summer  -  pastel, 8x10"

This was the second of two paintings done on Aug. 27th.  My easel was set in the same spot for both.  I just looked in different directions.  Economy of time and energy is a good thing.

The creek looked cool and inviting, but I had time restrictions to deal with, so I kept at it until it was time to pack it all up.

As I worked, several groups of people with kids stopped by to look.  I really enjoy talking to people about my work - especially kids.  They are genuinely interested and love the beautiful colors of the pastel sticks.

By the time I had finished the two paintings, I was beat.  I am always amazed at how tired I get at the end of a good day of painting.

Pastel, 8x10"
available

It's Cooler in the Shade

It's Cooler in the Shade  -  pastel, 5x7"

Well, it was at first, but as the day wore on in Channing Philbrick Park (formerly Linear Park) in Penfield, it became unbearably hot and muggy.  The good news it that it made the distant trees appear even blue-er.  I love those distant blues. And I love the dappled light that shone through the trees.  That's what caught my eye in the first place.

This was the first of two paintings done there that day, and honestly, I almost gave up on it half way through.  I felt as though I had gotten lost and had to really stop and reassess what was going on in the painting.  Stuck it out though and was able to pull it together.  Definitely more of a challenge than I expected.

Pastel, 5x7"
available

Chasing the Clouds Away

Chasing the Clouds Away -  pastel,  8x10

It's funny.  I tend to go to a place I like over and over again, painting the same scene several times until somehow, I am satisfied.  This is the case with Northampton Park recently.  I love the light and the scenery there.  This is the second one done there in the last couple of days.  I will probably go back again soon.  Haven't gotten my fill of it yet.

The scene was kind of wild and woolly, shaggy and over-grown - just the way I like it.  I hate things neat and trimmed.  The atmosphere was thick with humidity and it rained on me a couple of times, but it didn't matter.  I enjoyed every minute of it.

Spring Evening

Spring Evening  -  pastel,  9x12

Spring had sprung finally when I set out to do this stream painting with all of the subtle greens around it.  However, I didn't anticipate all of the hungry, newly-hatched mosquitoes that were swarming the place.  Usually mosquitoes don't even like me and pretty much tend to leave me alone, but apparently I was going to be the main course tonight.  I dealt with being bit for as long as I could stand it, but finally had to throw in the towel for the day.  Finished up in the studio.

Changes

Changes,    pastel  8x10

I hate to say it, but a change is coming.  The trees and vegetation know it as colors begin their slow and steady change to the colors we love in autumn.  Of course that also means that winter will be here soon.  The older I get, the more I hate the long dreary days of gray around here.  As a result, I will spend as much time as I can at places like this, soaking in the warmth of the sun, enjoying the beauty of the day.

Pastel,  8x10  available

Early Morning on Buck Pond

Early Morning on Buck Pond      9x12   SOLD

This studio piece was commissioned by a dear friend of mine for her mom.  Her mom had recently settled into an assisted living facility. My friend thought it would be nice for her mom to have an original piece of art depicting a favorite place of hers - "up along the ponds".  I am very familiar with the area, as it's one of my favorite places to paint.  In preparation, I took tons of reference photos and walked around the area looking for inspiration at different times of day. I also did 3 other studies before I sat down to do this final version. .

I think due to all of the prep work done ahead of time, this painting came together very smoothly.  I am very happy with the results and hope my friend's mom will enjoy the scene in her new home.

pastel, 9x12"  sold

A Shameless Plug...

Over the years, I can't count the number of times I have had people ask me if I teach pastel anywhere.  Unfortunately, I've always had to tell them "no".  Besides doing demos or the occasional workshop, I haven't taught on a regular basis.   However, due to a wonderful set of circumstances,  I will be teaching this summer!

I will be teaching a class on pastel painting for East Irondequoit Community Ed. Classes begin on Monday, July 7th and which will run for 5 weeks. If you would like more info, please click on the link below, then click on "Summer Community Education Course Offerings 2014.pdf ". My class is listed on page 6. You don't have to live in Irondequoit or even know how to paint to have fun exploring this great medium. Come and have fun! 

http://www.eastiron.org/news/adulted.htm

May Morning

May Morning  -  pastel,  16"x 12"

I actually did this painting a couple of years ago, but never finished it.  Some-times I get bored, sometimes a painting doesn't come together the way I envisioned.  Often, I will set something like this aside for awhile and see if I can improve and finish it later.  Well, this one took quite a bit of time to come back to. While started on location, this would not be considered to be plein air.  Too much work done in the studio.

Available

"Blue Haze' revisited

Blue Haze - 6" x 9"  SOLD

Recently I've had to move all of my paintings and supplies to a new location - my house!   Things are a bit topsy-turvey right now as I find a place for it all and redesign how I will use what was once my family room.  I think it will be a good decision once the dust of moving so much stuff settles because I will be able to work where I live.  Hopefully life's obligations will not prevent me from getting some work done.

As I looked over what I had, I discovered a lot of paintings I had done some time ago.  Some were good, others, not so good.  Some are candidates for reworking, based on what I know now as a more experienced artist.  So I will try to see what I can do to improve them.

This is the first painting I have re-worked.

The second image is a photo of the original painting. The first is a scanned image of the reworked painting which accounts for the sharper image.

I put a distant hill in the background to give it more depth, added a lot more detail, wider value range and a wider variety of subtle color in the correct values.

I really like the way it came out.

You can click on the photo to see more detail.

SOLD









https://www.etsy.com/shop/ColetteSavage

Windswept

"Windswept" -  8x10  pastel 

This little tree, bent by the wind, was standing all alone and unprotected in an open field.  The day I was there, the wind chilled me despite the intermittent sunshine.  I really liked the bend in the branches and the shape the tree took on from years of being exposed in that breezy spot.