Fixed myself but good!

[Bartc]

Out in Half Moon Bay, CA with the painting group again today. Did a nice one, but kind of darkened and spotted it with the fixative, so lost something. Ah well. B. Charlow 2022 20x10" pastel on white PastelMat.

 

[laika]

I didn't see it before the fixative, but I certainly like it the way it is!
Being hit up front with two invitations to go deeper into the painting makes my eyes dance

 

[CaliAnn]

Gorgeous painting! The colors are so vibrant and alive!

 

[Bartc]

Gorgeous painting! The colors are so vibrant and alive!

Unfortunately, that's because I had to try to correct them back in Photoshop to post it here.

 

[Terri]

Oh, I'm sorry the fix darkened the end result. I've read this can happen with soft pastels and to be wary of it - but I can't imagine trying to transport or do anything with a soft pastel without using some kind of fix, so what could be a work around?

It's still a beautiful scene. I'm guessing those golden yellows suffered the most.

 

[Artyczar]

I think this is gorgeous! Turned out great!

 

[Enyaw]

... unfortunately when you lose brightness you lose mood. I like the 2/1 ratio in the support size as it makes an interesting comp.

 

[Donna T]

There are some artists who purposely use fixative to darken areas but I know it's a bummer when it's unintended. It's still a great painting, Bart.

 

[Bartc]

Almost dropped some birds in (the field is a riparian habitat that is loaded with them), but the homage to VG would have been too obvious.
Yes, Terri, the picture is about depth of field (literally too!)
Thanks for the compliments everyone.

 

[Bartc]

... unfortunately when you lose brightness you lose mood. I like the 2/1 ratio in the support size as it makes an interesting comp.

Yeah, when coupled with the effect of moving it indoors, the change in lighting is rather strong and disappointing. When I take it outside into direct light it improves markedly, yet I can still see the impact of my imperfect fixing. I have been having better luck of late with one fixative, but doing it hurriedly outdoors never seems to work out well for me, which is what I did. Just have to remember the lesson....

 

[ntl]

Hmm. The road not taken?
Very nice!

 

[Lia]

Love it. And I love Half Moon Bay. I haven't used pastels in many years. If I ever get a house again, maybe. But this is outdoors, and I can do art outdoors. Beautiful pathways, indicating a choice to be made. I like the colors you chose. Even though it looks different to you after applying fixative, anyone else wouldn't know it was something else, before.

 

[Jo Castillo]

This is beautiful. I love the colors and textures.
You can always put more pastel over the fixative and brighten it up again. I don't use fixative unless I run out of tooth, I lightly spray and then add more pastel when dry. Do you have a special reason for using fixative? To carry my pastels in plein air, I put my paper or Pastelbord on foamcore and then have another piece to put over it and clip or tape to keep it from moving. Works well for storage, too.