7 DRAW outdoors

Kim Scouller suggests livening up a seasonal walk with a quick spot of drawing in colour

THE BENEFITS

Drawing and painting from life will bring huge benefits to your art, though the prospect of carrying lots of kit can put people off. Pastels are a great solution, as they allow access to a range of colours with which to respond to the location.

THE PROCESS

Soft pastels are the perfect medium for drawing outside. You don’t need a lot of kit; just a box of colours, a sketchbook and somewhere to sit.

A basic range of colours is ideal for getting started and you can always add in others when you get a feel for the subject. Once you’ve been out a few times, you will know which colours are useful for a particular subject. I often feel frustrated when I don’t have a particular shade to hand, but this has taught me to be more resourceful and either substitute it or to try to mix it from other colours.

To get started, lay down a light ground colour on your page using the long side of the pastel – this helps to soften the stark whiteness of the paper as you are working and also to unify the finished image. I like to blend in this ground layer using a paper towel or my hand.

Now lightly draw in the main composition, before blocking in the main shapes of tone using the pastels on their side. Try to slowly build up the colour in layers, rather than trying to put it down all at once. I leave line work and detail to the end, so I can use the pastel more firmly on its tip for the final layers.

When the drawing is finished, put a sheet of newsprint in-between the pages to stop the pastels rubbing off when you carry them home and then lightly spray the surface with fixative when you’re back in the studio. www.kimscouller.com