Paintings created by Carol L. Zack

Paintings created by Carol L. Zack

The History of Oil PastelBorrowed from the Oil Pastel Society Website www.oilpastelsociety.com

Oil Pastel is a relatively new medium, considering that most have been around for centuries. In 1921, assisted and advised by artist and theorist Yamamoto, 2 brothers-in-law developed a high quality crayon, which combined the soft, smooth color application of crayon with the brightness ofpastel. They continued to improve their product at the Sakura Crayon Company, and thus the name Cray-Pas was born. The final formulation was developed in 1927 and has been considered a children's medium, not one for the serious artist.

In 1947, artists Henri Goetz and Pablo Picasso approached Henri Sennelier with the idea of designing a professional version of the children's product. Picasso told Henri, "I want a colored pastel that I can paint on anything, wood, paper, canvas, metal, etc. without having to prepare or prime the canvas.“ Goetz wanted a pastel he could use to start oil paintings. He told Henri, "If painting seems to be the complete of all pictorial techniques, then pastel is certainly the most direct. No instrument as the brush,knife or palette interferes between the artist's gesture and his work.” Two years later in 1949, with the help of the two artists, Sennelier invented the first professional oilpastels.

They had a creamy consistency with a brilliant color palette. The unusually wide range of grays were chosen specifically by Picasso. Later an assortment of iridescent and metallic pastels was added followed by fluorescents. Sennelier also makes a giant pastel, and more recently a new "Le Grande“ size in the same color range as the standards.

Years later, other brands jumped into the market - Caran d'Ache in 1981, Holbein in the early 80s with two grades of their oil pastels: student and professional. Talens and Grumbacher added theirs at about the same time.

Oil pastels use wax and inert oils as a binder making them non-yellowing and giving them excellent adhesion characteristics. They are completely acid free, and they never harden, thus they will never crack. Oil pastels can be applied to any paper, rigid support or fabric support without technical restraints, allowing the artist complete freedom of expression while maintaining archival stability.

History References: Sakura Web site : www.jellyroll.com, Oil Pastel by Kenneth Leslie

What are Oil Pastels?

Oil Pastel is a medium that is applied using brightly colored sticks that contain large amounts of pure pigment, highly refined mineral oil and a small amount of wax. They are very sticky and sheer and can be blended and smudged to create oil painting like effects, or can be similar to soft pastel in the process used to build the painting.

The best quality oil pastels are Holbein, Sennelier and Mungyo Gallery Soft Oil Pastels because they seem to have the most pigment, are fade resistant and have less wax. These pastels are the culmination of more than 50 years of research, development, and manufacturing expertise in the oil pastel field. The manufacturing process is entirely automated to ensure uniformity of color distribution.

They handle evenly and cleanly and, once down, provide excellent surface stability. Because of the wax content and highly refined mineral oil used in their manufacture, they will never harden completely and therefore must be protected by framing the finished art work under glass. Oil Pastel is a fragile medium, but user friendly and easy to use. Simple paper towels, good quality paper and some Weber’s Res-n-gel are all that is needed to create a full painting.

Question and AnswerDo oil pastels need to be framed?A. Oil pastels will harden to some degree, but due to

their wax and oil content they never completely dry. Therefore they need to be framed behind glass for protection from the elements.

Sometimes an acrylic varnish is applied over the pastels and this leaves a protective coat that does

not need framing and can be gently wiped clean with a damp cloth.

Q. Can oil pastels be mixed with other mediums?A. Yes they can be used with traditional oil painting

mediums such as turpentine, mineral spirits andglazing mediums, and also acrylic mediums that have no water added.

Q. What supports are good with oil pastels?A. Oil Pastels are a very versatile media. They may be

used on any archival support such as paper, board, and canvas and even on metal and glass.

Q. What are the differences between oil pastels, soft pastels, hard pastels, oil sticks and oil bars?

A. All of these are made with the same pure pigments that are used in traditional oil paint.

The difference is the binder and the fact that they are all formed into a stick or bar.

• Oil pastels are pure pigment in a fossil wax and mineral oil binder.

• Soft and hard pastels are the same; the difference is in their hardness only. Soft pastels are

pure pigment with gum tragacanth as a binder.

• Oil sticks and oil bars are true oil paints, which are pure pigment and oil such as linseed, with a

drying agent as a binder. They form a skin that can be peeled off for use.

Click on http://www.oilpastelsociety.com• Become a member of OPS• Learn about other artists who create paintings using oil

pastel• Participate in the annual on line Oil Pastel Society Show

Learning to Paint with Oil PastelOil Pastel Classes are offered at The Fine Line Creative Arts Center in St. Charles, IL. and The DuPage Art League in Wheaton, IL. Carol Zack, who specializes in teaching both soft and oil pastel techniques is also available to teach workshops and can provide one-on-one private lessons in her studio in Elgin, IL. The Links listed below will provide more information www.zackartistry.comwww.fineline.orgwww.dupageartleague.org

Paintings by Carol L. Zack©All rights Reserved

The following pages showcase original, one-of-a-kind oil pastel paintings created by oil pastel artist, Carol L. Zack. Work is created on archival paper, such as Arches, Rives BFK, and archival mat board. No reproduction or copying these images without the permission of the artist.

“Sunburst” Oil Pastel

“A New Floral” Oil Pastel

Mother’s Day Roses

Oil Pastel

“Floral in a Pink Vase”Oil Pastel

“Portrait of Danielle” Oil Pastel (sold)

“Portrait of Emily”Oil Pastel (Sold)

“Portrait of Michael” Oil Pastel (Sold)

“Portrait of Katelyn”Oil Pastel (Sold)

“Portrait of Sarah”Oil Pastel (Sold)

“Portrait of Edward - Williamsburg in March”

Oil Pastel

“Girls at Trafalgar Square”

Oil Pastel

“Down the Gunnison” Oil Pastel

“Relaxing at Biltmore” Oil Pastel

“Twilight on the Thames”

Oil Pastel

“Utah Landsca

pe” Oil Pastel

“Sandpoint”

Oil Pastel

“Scottish Seascap

e” Oil Pastel

“Lake St Mary’”Oil Pastel

“The Venice Tavern”

Oil Pastel

“The Top of Galena” Oil Pastel

About Carol L. Zack

Carol Zack is a Chicago area artist who specializes in the use of oil pastels in her paintings. She enjoys using vibrant color in her pastel paintings and takes inspiration from the French Impressionist and Abstract Expressionist painters.

Carol is now actively involved in exhibiting and selling her paintings. She has won several awards locally and nationally. She offers painting workshops and welcomes commissions and gallery representation. She is actively engaged as a full time artist and framing consultant. She finds time to work in the greater fox valley community helping to strengthen the arts: •A founding member of the Yellow House Artists whose focus is on oil pastel painting.•Member of The Fine Line Creative Arts Center in St. Charles, IL and has been a faculty member since 2006.•Member of the Dupage Art League and enjoys teaching pastel to a lively and engaged group of pastel painters.•Continuing Education - she also travels each year to the Portrait Society of America’s yearly conference to learn from the modern portrait masters that provide lots of inspiration.•A member of the American Impressionist Society, The Oil Pastel Society and is a past board member of the Northwest Area Arts Council.

Carol has earned both her Bachelors and Masters of Arts Degree and has a faculty member at The University of Illinois, Ball State University and The Illinois Institute of Art. Visit Carol at http://www.zackartistry.com