Urania Christy Tarbet: Landscape in Pastel - Reflections of Monet's Garden

From foundation to completion, Urania Christy Tarbet, shows you how to use pastel painting techniques to construct a delicate, peaceful slice of time captured at Monet's reflecting pond at his garden in Giverny.

Tarbet begins her pastel painting lesson by explaining her material preferences. She shares pointers on archiving work and keeping track of pastels. She then tones her pastel surface (Ampersand Pastel Board) to help establish continuity and harmony.

She discusses the pros and cons of her composition and demonstrates blocking in the basic shapes of her drawing using simple vine charcoal. Tarbet lays down the basic colors in her painting, preparing the way to capture the subtle color shifts of her subject in subsequent layers. Tarbet uses several time-tested pastel painting techniques to apply her color. She overlaps multiple layers of hues to create an astounding array of subtle greens. She shows you how to reclaim the grit of your drawing surface.

Tarbet also points out special considerations to take into account when working with soft pastels, and suggests ways to make clean up and framing easier. 

"You can't be afraid of color, because color is what pastel is all about." That's how leading pastelist Urania Christy Tarbet describes her confident approach to this lush, layered medium. Join Urania, a founding member of the Pastel Society of America, as she re-lives a peaceful slice of time at Monet's garden in Giverny (zhe-ver-nee). In this workshop, you'll discover the strokes, sense of color and composition skills you need to capture a brilliant landscape.

Urania tones her board with splashes of blue and sketches her composition with thick lines of vine charcoal. But once she reaches into her box of pastels, she finds the light touch that defines her work. She blocks in the water and trees with strokes she compares to an angel's breath. She demonstrates several methods for applying pastel, including the venerable cross-hatch stroke.

She overlaps multiple shades to create an astounding array of subtle greens. You'll learn to blend and layer to find the perfect hue and value every time without carrying hundreds of pastels in your kit.

Urania commands an intimate understanding of her materials. Throughout the workshop she offers advice on color selection, caring for pastels, archiving work work and tracking your colors. Her goal is to make you comfortable with the medium and to permit your own creative expression freedom. She even has suggestions that make clean up and framing easier.

To stroll through the lillies of Giverny (zhe-ver-nee) as you hone your pastel skills, join Urania Christy Tarbet in Landscape in Pastel: Reflections of Monet's Garden.

BONUS CLIP: Painting Trees and Leaves in Pastel

In this clip from her video workshop, Landscape in Pastel: Reflections of Monet's Garden, Urania Christy Tarbet creates wispy, leaf-laden trees above a reflecting pond. You learn to establish trunks with charcoal, then Urania teaches her favorite stroke for painting foliage.