About Pastels and Acrylic paintings

Pastels

What is a pastel?

A pastel is a creative work produced with pastels. Some call it a pastel drawing others call it a pastel painting. Pastels are an art medium in the form of a stick, with paint qualities. The stick is very similar to oil paint without the oil. It consists of pure powdered pigment, rolled into round or square sticks held together with very small amounts of binder such as methylcellulose, gum arabic, or and gum tragacanth. The color effect of pastel is closer to the natural dry pigment than any other process this creates more brilliantly colored paintings than any other medium. This is why Cynthia loves working with them.

Below are the various types of pastels. Cynthia works primarily with soft pastels, hard pastels, pan pastels. and pastel pencils.

• Soft pastels

• Pan pastels

• Hard pastels

• Pastel pencils

• Oil pastels

• Water-soluble pastels

Pastels have been around since the Renaissance and were very popular in the 18th century. If cared for properly they can last hundreds of years and not fade.

Acrylics

What is Acrylic Paint?

Acrylic paint is water-based paint. It consists of pigment particles dispersed in an acrylic polymer emulsion. There are three main components in any acrylic paint - pigment, binder, and vehicle. It is water-soluble and fast-drying and becomes water-resistant once dry. So compared to pastels is it much more resistant to moisture and contact with liquids. Acrylic paint was first developed in the 1950's as a house paint, and made commercially available as artist grade paint in the 1960s. Since then, it’s become a primary art material for a number of contemporary artists. Acrylic paint is extremely versatile. Depending on how much the paint is diluted with water, or modified with acrylic gels, mediums, or pastes, a finished acrylic painting can resemble a watercolor, gouache, or oil painting. It can also have its own unique characteristics not attainable with other media. For these reasons, it is one of Cynthia's favorite mediums.