Mixing pan and stick soft pastels?

[Bartc]

Jackson's has a sale on pan pastels. I can paint quite well with brushes in various media, but in the past couple of years I've switched to soft pastels, the sticks. I have never tried the pan pastels. They look to me like my wife's makeup and seem to use similar tools, so I'm guessing they have similar consistencies, etc.

What I love about other media that is not easy to do with pastel sticks is truly mixing colors, thus necessitating many expensive pastel stick colors. I'm assuming from what I read that pan pastels can be successfully mixed from primaries the same way I would with other media (acrylic, oil, watercolor, etc.) Is that truly so? That would be a blessing to my budget.

Have any of you tried mixing pan and stick soft pastels in the same painting? I'm assuming you can go over pan with stick successfully, but wonder if you can successfully use the pan over stick pastels.

Can anybody share any direct experience here? Thanks.

 

[MurrayG]

Hi Bart. I am also just trying the panpastels. For me, I "mix" or blend on the paper. You can draw stick over pans, the pans I am not sure will go so easily over stick... but that may depend on your painting etc. I use the blending Softt stubs for the panpastels. I like them as they produce beautiful soft blends and gradations. I think there is a learning curve to make them sing Others with more experience may chime in.

 

[Bartc]

Hi Bart. I am also just trying the panpastels. For me, I "mix" or blend on the paper. You can draw stick over pans, the pans I am not sure will go so easily over stick... but that may depend on your painting etc. I use the blending Softt stubs for the panpastels. I like them as they produce beautiful soft blends and gradations. I think there is a learning curve to make them sing Others with more experience may chime in.

Thanks for that info, Murray. Eager to hear more.
You can certainly mix sticks on the paper by smudging with finger or any device, but that has always dulled the vibrancy of the pastels - one of its major pluses over other media. If blending with pans has the same impact, then it wouldn't do me any good for the way I desire to paint.
I had the notion that you could gently mix the pan primaries on a palette and apply to the paper without losing the vibrancy of the crystal pigment structure. If that is not the case, please let me know!

 

[MurrayG]

Thanks for that info, Murray. Eager to hear more.
You can certainly mix sticks on the paper by smudging with finger or any device, but that has always dulled the vibrancy of the pastels - one of its major pluses over other media. If blending with pans has the same impact, then it wouldn't do me any good for the way I desire to paint.
I had the notion that you could gently mix the pan primaries on a palette and apply to the paper without losing the vibrancy of the crystal pigment structure. If that is not the case, please let me know!

Hi Bart, I'm a learnatic. But most of what I have tried, and watched demos, folk take the colour from the pan and paint directly, thats what I do as well. The soft stubs mix on the paper, the colours blend and seem more vibrant than a blended stick. Whereas with sticks, the blending seems to loose vibrancy unless you are careful. I tend to layer with sticks and now blend less. But, if they are on sale, hey try them. I also see that some folk use em in broad swaths as a base and then paint onto that and keep the vibrancy. Penny may have more experience..

 

[MurrayG]

I had the notion that you could gently mix the pan primaries on a palette and apply to the paper without losing the vibrancy of the crystal pigment structure. If that is not the case, please let me know!

Hi Bart, actually I have seen people use them in a painterly way, wetting and applying as a wash. BUT I believe you would do better with acrylics in that case.... But rules are made to be broken. As they are pure pigments, the colours would be bright - but you may need to check solubility in water or alcohol depending on the pigment of each colour ...? Good luck.

 

[Bartc]

Murray, I already use (at times) sticks, both soft and hard, with water and/or alcohol for underpainting. That doesn't require adding pans to the mix for my purposes. For a whole painting, if I'm going wet like that it's easier to just do watercolor, to which stick pastel can be added later if desired. Doesn't sound as though pans are going to add anything I need. Thanks.

 

[Jo Castillo]

A friend uses Pans for under painting and painting. She likes that they are not as dusty. For painting she swipes the sponge or tool three times and puts down once. Wipes, the tool if necessary for next color. She uses inexpensive make up sponges. To get a lighter color she swipes on the dark and then the light then the surface. It is fun. This is a painting I did with Pans, it is 5 x 7 on Pastelbord. With detail.

 

[Bartc]

Nice painting Jo.