Pastel paintings are a delightful way to create energetic and interesting paintings. The high pigment strength and convenience make pastels a true fine artist medium. Think of the sublime works of Edgar Degas pastel paintings. But excellent artist's pastels can be pricey. You cannot skimp on quality pigment either as this defeats the object of using pastels.

I was excited to try out Koh-I-Noor's extra soft artist's pastels recently. They are reasonably priced and look like good quality too. In this article I review Koh-I-Noor's extra soft pastels and Fabriano watercolor paper. Plus a full demonstration pastel painting with a handy technique for pastel paintings. Try it out for yourself.

It is the end of 2018 and a good time to look back on the year. In Episode 35 of An Artist's Journey Podcast I am reviewing what worked in 2018. In art marketing that is. Well, in my experience anyway. What worked and what failed. Why I am over certain social media platforms and bullish on others. Most importantly what art marketing methods continue to deliver the goods year after year. These are the methods to focus on going into 2019. Let's take a closer look.

White paint is the most important color that you find on any artist's palette. White paint is necessary to tint other colors into more realistic hues. To mix the vast variety of colors that we perceive requires white paint. But are you aware of what your white paint is made of? Research has revealed that modern white paints can lead to a paintings failure in as little as three years.

In this article we are going to look at the problem with white paint. Also what artists should be doing to avoid having their paintings deteriorate.

No doubt about it a good painting knife is an artist's best friend. Often overlooked while brushes get all the publicity. The humble painting knife can play a strong supporting role or emerge as the star of the show. When you want to add that extra touch of texture or punch to your paintings, the painting knife will deliver. 

In this article I want to introduce the types of painting knives I prefer. Plus a handy painting knife technique you can use in your next painting.

In Episode 34 of An Artist's Journey Podcast you will meet the talented Sebastiaan Theart. I recently discovered Sebastiaan's work on Instagram. His work shows a great variety of subject matter. But all linked with excellent drawing skill and a clear individualistic path. This artists is not about following the trend, but is rather creating his own unique body or work. A refreshing approach these days.

​Find out more about Sebastiaan Theart in this episode of An Artist's Journey Podcast.

What can six months of art coaching do for your painting? Art workshops are useful and can be fun to attend. But they can be difficult to schedule into your busy life. Plus when the workshop ends so too does the feedback and support you need. Often artists forget to apply the workshop lessons and revert to their old painting habits. Not ideal.

But there is a solution. 

Art Bundles for Good is a community project involving artists from all over the world. Participating artists include some of their products into a giant bundle of art resources. These include courses, books and other digital resources. I am excited to be taking part as well.

The best part is that 25% of the Art Bundle for Good profits are going to support Courageous Kitchen, a Bangkok based charity helping refugees. The Art Bundle for Good is a great opportunity to get dozens of top art learning resources from many of the biggest names in the industry and do some good.

This is the Third year that Art Bundles for Good is running this project.

Invest in Yourself, Invest in Your Art:
​Ready to take your art and creativity to an entirely new level? Learn from dozens of top art instructors all for one great price.  The Art Bundle for Good has 100 different courses and other amazing art resources to help you with all aspects of your creativity.

Stop wasting your time trying to figure out everything on your own. Learn from the best in the comfort of your own home. Life is too short to not live your biggest passions every single day. If you are not taking the time to do your art now, then when?

How to paint with oils on paper is a popular topic of discussion. I posted an article last year together with a full demonstration on how to prepare your paper. It received plenty of comments and views. I have been meaning to add the follow up lesson on the painting itself. One thing and another has put that off. Until now.

In this article I show a full painting demonstration using oils on paper. I hope it helps you. Please share it with anyone you know who will find if helpful too.

It has been described in the most unflattering terms. "Shambolic", "Cultural re-colonisation" and worse. This is the state of the Copyright Amendment Bill currently under scrutiny in Parliament. Will South African artist's interests come first or will the new Act be stillborn? What are the objectives of the amendment? What is new and how will artists benefit? 

Find out more from my special guest who is also an expert appointed by Parliament's Portfolio Committee on the Copyright Amendment Bill.

I do like a good paint brush. Yes, they make a difference as I discovered with bristle brushes for oil painting. But what about watercolor brushes? Or a versatile brush you can use for acrylics too. Synthetic brushes preferably. The brush must, above all else, keep its shape and last a long time. Asking too much? Not to the clever Germans at Kum.

Their new Memory Point brushes claim to solve the problem of wayward synthetic hair ruining your painting experience. In this article I going to test the brushes with a watercolor painting.