The Bottom Line
Pros
- Watch an accomplished pastel painter as he works in his studio.
- Demonstrations include a portrait from a model and a self-portrait.
- See how the artist uses his sketchbook to develop a figure painting from start to finish.
- Gives you plenty of tips for painting with pastels, and composition.
- Shows why you should have interesting 'props' in your studio.
Cons
- Will make you wish you'd been more diligent in working in your own sketchbook.
- Gives you another reason for buying objects that catch your eye, for putting in a painting one day.
Description
- DVD produced by APV Films.
- Length: 60 minutes.
- Languages: English only.
- Formats: PAL (from APV Films) or NTSC (from The Artist's Place).
- Tom Coates is an artist who paints with pastels, oils, and watercolors.
Guide Review - Pastel Painting DVD: Figures in Pastel by Tom Coates
Tom Coates' Figures in Pastel DVD is filmed entirely in his studio, so it's as if you've popped in for a visit and stayed to watch as he paints. If you've ever wanted to see an experienced pastel painter at work, this is your chance.
The first pastel painting is a portrait of a local town crier, dressed in full regalia. (The one on the cover of the DVD.) It's a large painting, in which the facial features are done to a greater level of detail than the rest. I particularly liked the shots where you could see the painting and the model at the same time, so you can compare what the artist is seeing to what he's painting.
Coates then shows how he develops paintings from figure sketches in his sketchbooks, how he works out a composition and refines it as he goes along, and how he uses objects in his studio in his paintings (including an old chair and a rocking horse). If you ever need to convince yourself or, more likely a partner, that it's a good thing to collect interesting objects in your studio, Coates' paintings will prove it.
In a self-portrait wearing a straw hat, Coates produces a painting that at one stage is very red as if he'd got extremely sunburnt!
The DVD is packed with tips on pastel painting, composition, and color. Watching Coates at work, adjusting the accuracy, color, and composition as he paints, will be inspiring to anyone who doesn't like to plan in detail before painting. He talks you through what he's doing, so you can understand why he's done what he has.
