I recently started 2 new pieces and for a moment I had a bit of anxiety, trying to figure out where to begin! And then I remembered the secret to getting started.
Watch the video and share your thoughts and comments. What is the first thing you do when you have a new piece?
38 Comments
Hi! I’m
Nicholas Wilton
the founder of Art2Life.
With over 20 years experience as a working artist and educator, I’ve developed a systematic approach that brings authenticity, spontaneity and joy back into the creative process.
Join me and artists from all over the world in our Free Art2Life Artists Facebook Group or learn more here about Art2Life.
Yep I get Stuck alot! I would like to use Oil Pastels .. Nicholas do you have to varnish over the oil Pastels … do they ever dry? !!
I am wondering the same, Nicholas. Seems like they never dry. And can you paint over them? Thanks for all the great encouragement and information!
Please add me to the list of curious people regarding the non drying factor.
Yes, that drying question is mine too. Are you concerned at all about the oil pastels not drying or do you have a way of making them dry?
Hello Andeana Duncton- I have used Sennelier D’Artigny Oil Pastel Fixative over my oil pastels – on paper and canvas – works great – protects the oil pastels against dust and smearing……sold by Dick Blick.
Thank you!!!
I have similar questions? Do you paint over the wax and oil products with acrylic paints and varnishes?
Hey Nick and everyone, I love this! This has been one of the greatest benefits to me from the CVP and i find it spilling over into my life all over the place. Last eve i was hanging with my 6 year old nephew who is very serious about soccer 🙂 and we were taking penalty shots on each other. And i found myself getting all serious and concentrating and in my head before a shot. And then i just CVP-switched over to just haul off and enjoy the feeling of taking a kick without even thinking much where it will go. And i became super energized. Such a better way to live one’s life. Thanks for these videos, Nick!
What is CVP?
It’s a 3 month online course i did with Nick this winter. Highly recommend it: https://www.art2life.com/art2life-creative-visionary-path-program/
Thank you, Laura. What do the letters C V & P stand for?
I think it’s Creative Visionary Path
Thanks, Laura!!!
Great kickoff to a day of painting! Thanks for your quiet kind helpful talks. I love them. Going out to splash around in the studio now.
I loved that part with mixing the colors! Did not know you could do that. Also, I always love that clean organized table you go back to!
Same question about the oil pastels I purchased them for encaustics but cannot use them they do not fully dry so I wanted to use another way what can they be combined with and how do you seal them?
Thank you for your continued inspiration!
Linda, you can combine them with encaustic if you don’t use them too thickly. Fusing encapsulates the oil pastel which means it doesn’t have to dry -just don’t use too much of them!
Hi Eveybody!
Always an inspirational Sunday Video.
After weeks of preparing – rearranging my studio and ordering supplies – new wood panels and paints sit here waiting patiently for my engagement, I finally feel the playful muse calling. Thanks Nick! I needed this 😁
I also love oil pastels, even though not many people do. I believe that practicing is the best way to learn to use them. I sometimes use them on watercolors or acrylics, and enjoy scraping with a spatula.
Out of inspiration, last week I remembered your advise and pasted some papers at random on a board… and a new collage appeared. Thank you!
I’ve learned over the years with my acrylic painting that I have to Trust the process. I’ve painted long enough to know that the beginning layers are just a way to get paint down and I know that eventually it will go through all of it’s phases to turn into a finished piece. Thanks for the reminder to just start and not worry about it!
Again, thanks for the inspiration, it helps so much. I have painted over oil sticks after they dry a couple of days.
Thanks!!
I always feel stuck at the beginning. Maybe the possibilities of so many options rattles me. Lately, I forget to play, enjoy the process instead of getting locked in that fear. Yes, I know I’m getting in my own way. Gotta let go…trying.
I don’t get stuck with the starting so much but it’s the second and third steps that have me saying, “Now what?” I could use your advice which sounds like “Do something! Anything!”
The late painter Jon Imber put out a video a few years back about his painting (and his battle with ALS). In the video clip I saw, he is standing outside doing a plein air session. He is looking at the harbor and he says something like,”Just start with a yellow canoe.” I have always loved that and feel that it reflects exactly what you are saying. Put something down, anything. You need something to build on other than a blank canvas and you need to remember that yes, you have been here before and yes, you can do it again.
Thanks as always for your generosity in sharing. It’s appreciated.
Libby
Thank you for all these great inspiring videos. I enjoy the playfulness in this.
I use Senniler oil pastels too, the larger size and love the colors and texture of the medium. I find it doesn’t ever really oxidize like oil bars because of the wax content. I have works on paper that haven’t dried in years. Do you have any thoughts on that? Does it create a problem for you?
Thank you.
Ellen Abramson
So there’s wax in the Sennilier oil bars?
I have a few Winsor and Newton oil bars and I thought they dried but I really haven’t experimented with them enough to really know and I honestly don’t even recall which painting I originally used them on. I love the idea of drawing with oil bars and using them with oil paints jand have been thinking about buying some more, but now I too am wondering about how to use them, dry them, varnish them etc. Sounds like there are several brands out there that may vary in content so probably lots to learn. Thanks for bringing this up today Nicholas, along with the reminder to just get started and enjoy the process, always great reminders. Looking forward to your response on these oil bars so many of us are curious about.
Thank you for sharing your wisdom. Your videos are always such an inspiration and soooo refreshing. THANK YOU!
Thanks, Nick, for the Sunday morning inspiration. It’s hard for me to get started unless I left work the day before that needs the obvious. For new work, I found it helpful that you said the stakes are so low and you have no expectations, just putting color down. So important to remember. One thing that works for me is when I have leftover paint from end of day, I spread that on the panel or canvas. I have that to come back to. You also nailed it for me to point out that you get energy from the work you are initially putting on the board, not putting energy from yourself to the board. That is so true. It really is like trudging to the gym, just getting there is 90% of it; just sitting at the table, opening some paint and putting on the board is 90% of it. I never know where it’s going. Susan
I would love to see your next step after the pastels …
I always enjoy hearing from you and your sharing of your process!
I am still working in my studio and often hear your voice!
Thank you.
Great stuff Nicolas. Thanks. It is frustrating that you have to re-learn these lessons, practically with every new work. Is there some hidden desire to have a painting in your head and execute it start to finish? I don’t know. Maybe if you actually learn these lessons and apply them each time, they too will become a system or method which may hinder experimentation.
Thank you so much. I have taken a big step back from work to make space for painting and other activities. Looking forward to putting all your teachings to work. I too would like to hear more about CVP. I looked under programs on your website–the info is about the course that has already ended. Would you be able to update that?
Such a helpful reminder, and fun to see you use the oil pastels like that, as a way to start…also the R&F stick (great idea for mixing/changing colors). I have a starter set of about 5 R&F sticks but haven’t tried them yet. You’ve given me yet another great new idea…thanks so much! Like Michela, I’d love to see what you do next with these two pieces!
Although I’d never given it much thought before, it’s absolutely true that often before I begin a piece and am wondering where to start, I can feel lethargic; but as soon as I show up and start, my energy seems to show up too.
So good to listen to an artist speak of their work in such a relaxed way. This makes my own studio feel more inviting. Thanks for the encouragement.
I tear up big bits of paper that are painted in flat acrylic paint and throw them around. I always get ridiculously excited by the interaction between the colours and that gets me started.
Did I miss the response to our questions about the ability or inability of oil pastels to dry?
Always appreciate your insights.
Thank you