Hazy Hills

Pastel on Clairefontaine Pastelmat, 19 x 26.75 inches

This was one of those lovely hazy summer days, when distant trees appear increasingly bluer the further away they are, because you are looking through so much atmosphere (sounds like I know what I'm talking about doesn't it?).  The cattle dominate, obviously, but did you spot the two rabbits I placed in the right foreground on the short-cut grass ?  A pastoral pastel don't you think ?

Another word for you other Pastellists; further to my comments about using Pastel Card on the 'Hitch-Hiker' post, I've just started using Clairefontaine Pastelmat, and it's wonderful.  To quote my friend and painting colleague Mary Herbert, "where has it been all my life?!"  Pastelmat is a deceptively smooth surface that really grabs the Pastel pigment, and is a joy to work on and I think once my current supply of Pastel Card has been used up, I shall be painting exclusively on Pastelmat.