Essays on Painting

Pastels have the advantage of offering almost pure, opaque colour and
the opportunity of using self coloured paper. This has enough tooth to
enable the pastels to be deposited onto it. Mistakes may be overlaid although
if built up too thickly, it could result in it shedding. The major disadvantage
of this medium is its tendency to fall off. There is the possibility of using
spray fixative to avoid this. However too heavy an application can change
the appearance of the work so it must be used sparingly and with caution.
Acrylics and oils are the most commonly used nowadays.
Acrylics have definite advantages for the beginner. The early ones had the
disadvantage of drying too quickly to mix colours satisfactorily but through
the judicious use of retarders they now take slightly longer to dry and are
a little more forgiving. Although not terribly portable they have the great
advantage of not changing their appearance when they have dried. Further-
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