Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Chefchaouen 6

Since photographing this one, I added a small signature in the bottom right-hand corner, which balances it nicely. How I love these blues! And that swash of school-bus yellow, courtesy of a big bold Diane Townsend pastel. I like the PastelMat for boldness. I ordered more and am still awaiting it.



Rumi update: Ventured out into snow and 17 degrees F today to take Rumi to the kitty ophthalmologist. We now have a big new antiviral pill to try to get down his little gullet once a day.


With two cats in the house under the age of 1, you never know what you're going to wake up to...




And then, oh the innocent faces!...





More art on my website: jalapfaff.com

10 comments:

Mona Diane Conner said...

Jala, how do you like PastelMat compared to La Carte Sennelier sanded paper and Wallis paper (if you've tried those too?)? How does it differ? I see it's only recently available via mail-order or out west.

Jala Pfaff said...

Hi Mona!
It's so hard to explain it in words...you might want to order a small pad of it from Dakota (that's how I tried it out). I imagine the "feel" of it varies a lot according to the individual artist and the way they use pastel. For me and this Morocco series, this style of using pastel (bold and thick and unlayered and unblended), I love the PastelMat. A thick, single stroke on the side of the pastel gives to my eye almost an oil paint look.
Sennelier I love too, but it looks so different. You can always see the grain showing through, which seems to give a more delicate effect to my eye (and therefore is not so good for this Morocco series). And Wallis, I don't know why but I just don't like the way pastel goes on it.
What do you like?

Patrice said...

One of my favorite painters is Milton Avery. Your new pieces have the same effect upon me. They are wonderful because there is nothing that can be taken away.

Dominique Seidler said...

J'adore vos pastels. C'est vraiment très beau et serein. J'aime aussi beaucoup vos chats !
Quelle quiètude ! Même lorsqu'ils font des bêtises ...

Jala Pfaff said...

Hi Patrice, What a wonderful comment and compliment. I like Avery too, though I'm not as familiar with his work as I probably ought to be. It's so interesting that you put it that way ("nothing that can be taken away") as that is truly part of my artistic philosophy/sensibility/M.O.: reduce until nothing else can be taken away. Thank you!

Bonjour Artemisia, merci beaucoup pour votre visite! Mes chats vous embrassent.

Anonymous said...

This really sparkles, Jala!

Mona Diane Conner said...

Jala, I love your answer about PastelMat, and I'll try it, thanks! I'm experimenting with various pastel surfaces, and so far my favorite is Sennelier La Carte.

Jala Pfaff said...

Hi Donald, thank you! It must be the complementary/near-complementary colors.

Hi again Mona, Glad the description was helpful. I'll be curious to know what you think of it--let me know. LaCarte is still my favorite for other types of pastel application (where the delicate look is desired).

Don Gray said...

Jala, I really enjoy your work--these abstract pastels just sing. I'm especially appreciative of your different stylistic approaches, as well. I guess I'm especially sensitive to the subject of style since my own work is stylistically varied. I've been blogging on that subject lately and getting many interesting comments from artists. Great to see your work.

Kelley Carey MacDonald said...

Lynx is saying "What???? You don't LIKE the way I decorate?" Beautiful baby....