About my newly purchased Tabletop Easel

One of my latest additions in art stationery is a Table Top Easel. I had been looking out for one since long. Some of my last few paintings have been created on this Easel. It is light weight, easy to use and carry. I may use it for my plein air sketching very soon.

A very big advantage of using this easel is that my neck muscles do not get strained any more as I paint and sketch at eye level. The base is adjustable and I can easily adjust the height as per my requirement. For my soft pastel and charcoal works I use a masking tape to pin the paper on a simple mount board which can then be placed on base of the easel. 

When the painting is placed at an angle on the easel, it becomes very convenient to get up every fifteen minutes and to watch the work from a distance. Analysing the work from a distance helps in a better evaluation. I am loving this easel and plan to use it for all my future works. I purchased it from ART STATION but after an online search later I realised that it is available on AMAZON too. Online shopping is definitely more convenient but it can become an addiction. I browse regularly these days to check on certain pastel brands and get very tempted to place an order but then I remind myself of all the unused stationery that I already have at home. Self discipline and patience in every field is so very important.

My newly purchased Table top Easel

The base can be raised higher using the screws provided 

at the sides. Its angle too can be adjusted.

Table top Easel with canvas board placed on its base.

I can fix the paper on which I want to create the work

with masking tape on to this board.

An arrangement that is working good for me.

The reference photograph is at the top.

My Canson Mi Teintes paper is on an archival quality

mount board ( Fixed with masking tape at four corners )

One of my Coorg paintings in soft pastel is in progress.

I love to read inspiring quotes. Sometimes they are the exact words that I would want to hear to keep me motivated so that so that I can draw, sketch and paint on a regular basis. The passion for art is always there from within but at times it needs to be fueled. Therefore through this blog I share the quotes that touch my heart and keep me on track on this art journedy.

Today's Quotation

"The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be." Ralph Waldo Emerson

The papers I use for my soft pastel paintings

I have posted earlier about the PAPERS I USE FOR MY CHARCOAL SKETCHINGS.

Since I am a lot into soft pastel paintings too I decided to create a post about the papers
I frequently use for my soft pastel art.

Soft pastels were new to me and I initially had no idea how to use them. The first paper
I tried them on was Fabriano Elle Erre which was available at the Art store near my place
ie ART STATION. I was at that time also into a lot of still life paintings. Creating still life
works from live objects helped me a lot in creating my original art works and I learnt a lot
about colours, values, shadows and perspective. The images below are some of my initial
attempts on Fabriano Elle Erre paper. This paper is available many different shades.

Two still life works using soft pastels

On Fabriano Elle Erre paper

Fabriano Elle Erre paper is made in Italy. It is an acid free paper, has one smooth side and 

the other side has rough surface ie parallel lines running across. It is available in many 

different vibrant colours. 

Fabriano Elle Erre paper 200 gsm

Available in different shades

( Photo courtesy: Google.com )

I used this paper for some time and then I came across Canson Mi Teintes which was

available at Art Lounge, the stationery shop at Churchgate. After using the Canson paper, 

I realised that it has a very sandy textured surface which worked very well for my soft 

pastel art. Furthermore it has the advantage of having a different texture on either side : A honeycombed textured side and a fine grain smooth side.  

The rough honeycombed textured side

of Canson Mi Teintes paper

The fine grain smooth textured side

of Canson Mi Teintes paper.

The different colours of 

Canson Mi Teintes paper. ( Around 50 colours )

Canson paper is manufactured in France. It is acid free paper and highly receptive with great

tooth which has a good grip on the pastels. As a result the pastels stick on the surface instead of falling off like powder. I normally create two layers of the painting and try not to scrub the 

pastels too hard on the surface. Also I try working more on the fine grain textured side instead 

of using the honey combed textured surface. Given below are two of my initial works in soft 

pastel on Canson Mi Teintes paper.

Two still life works done using soft pastels

on fine grain smooth textured side of

Canson Mi Teintes paper.

A Pathway in Coorg ( SOLD )

A Landscape painting

using soft pastels on Canson Mi Teintes paper.

So far I have been buying my Canson papers from ART LOUNGE but of late I have realised 

that some online stores in India have started selling it too. So one can check it out on

Flipkart, Amazon or snapdeal. I would any day prefer to buy it online as it saves a lot of time

travelling.

Finally, the third paper that I came across for my soft pastel works was Fabriano Tiziano. 

One of my students introduced me to online art shopping and I had read about this paper while

doing my "Online study" about soft pastels. So I ordered my first pad of Fabriano sheets

( Black colour ) sized 12"X 16" through FLIPKART. 

I used this paper for a lot of my landscape works and fell in love with this paper too. Its very

much similar to Canson Mi Teintes and since my technique of working with pastels does not

require too much of layering, I enjoyed working on this paper. It has enough tooth on its

surface to fix the soft pastels applied in two to three layers.

Fabriano papers are manufactured in Italy. It is an acid free paper and is available in many 

different shades. However I have only used the black sheets so far. 

A soft pastel painting from Coorg

created on Fabriano Tiziano paper.

The different colours as available in Fabriano Tiziano.

 Image courtesy : ARTEL

In conclusion, I am presently using both Canson Mi Teintes and Fabriano Tiziano paper for 

my soft pastel art. I use Fabriano Elle Erre for my thumbnail sketches or demo works

during Art Workshops as this paper in comparison to Canson cannot hold much of pastels
to its surface. The pastel dust keeps falling off the paper rather than getting fixed on it.

When I am not painting, I take out time to browse through the net to go through the soft

pastel art by artists around the world. Therefore I know that there are so many different

papers availabe like U Art, Wallis sanded paper, Ampersand etc. These papers are not

marketed in India so far but I would love to try them some day. But as of now I shall

continue using the papers as above to better my art and evolve my technique.

NOTE: I use papers and other stationery products that suit my kind of art work. So my
opinion and review is based on my technique. Every artist has her/his favorite brand
of products. As an artist it is important to experiment and explore. After some months or
years I may get into some new paper.

Therefore it may always happen that what works for me may not work for someone else.
What is more important to use the products that suits one's way of working and techniques.

Follow my latest works and techniques on INSTAGRAM and if you love my works and they inspire you, share them with your friends.

Thank you for browsing through my artworks.

Limestone cliffs at Phi Phi Leh ( Thailand )

I painted the scene as below with reference to my photograph taken at Phi Phi Leh. Phi Phi Leh
is an uninhabited island that lies 1.5 km off the southmost tip of Phi Phi Don. The stunning
vertical cliffs capped with foliage give way to small sandy beaches and tropical coral seas.

We took a six hour Long tail boat tour which took us all around Phi Phi Leh. The view all
around was amazing. The water all around was so crystal clear that we could see the
submerged rocks and other thriving marine life underneath. As an artist when I look at the
marvel of nature I immediately begin to interpret the colours, the source of light, the shadows
and this acute observation combined with the reference photo helps me recreate the
magical atmosphere on paper.

Getting the colours in the rock right sometimes can be a struggle such as this one. But I have
been doing so many forest scenes of late that a change of subject is like a new beginning in
itself. after having done this one, I am doing another of "Phi Phi Leh" series. The next one will
probably require a little less effort.

 The Vertical Cliffs
Soft Pastel on Canson Mi Teintes paper
Size 6" X 8"

What I enjoyed doing the most was the rocks that can be seen under the blue green waters.
Thailand is blessed with beautiful beaches. This place also reminded me of
my visit to Langkawi in Malaysia where we had similar tall cliffs.

Phi Phi Leh ( Thailand ) 

Image courtesy: Google.com

The next soft pastel painting that I am doing is from a photograph which I clicked while

we were approaching Phi Phi Leh by the Long Tail boat.