Painting Brilliant Skies & Water in Pastel

Book excerpt: From skies above to water below, discover the secrets to glorious landscapes! No two elements of the landscape bring the artist greater inspiration--or greater challenge--than sky and water. Get them right and you have magic. Get them wrong and your whole painting is off. In this book, popular pastel artist and teacher Liz Haywood-Sullivan shares her secrets for getting them both right, every time. With her practiced and proven approach, you can experience the joy of painting glowing skies and sparkling water. Inside you'll find: • 24 step-by-step demonstrations showing the creation of breathtaking skies and water in pastel. • Techniques for painting skies, including the various types of clouds and how light changes depending on the season and time of day. • How to depict water in all its forms, from calm, reflective ponds and meandering rivers to whitewater cascades and ocean waves. • A clear and simple approach to the puzzling concepts of aerial perspective and the nature of reflections. • A primer on materials to help novice artists and newcomers get started in pastel. Beautifully illustrated with stunning landscapes, Painting Brilliant Skies and Water in Pastel is a must for artists who have not found the targeted help they seek in other landscape painting books. Use it to make the most of natures' inspiration and pour mood, movement, and poetry into your paintings.