Andrea McFarland
My work is done in dry pastel on colored sandpaper. I tend to choose subjects that move me toward a quality of solitude or spaciousness. I may do plein air sketches, but do most of my work in the studio. I begin by referring to a combination of photos, sketches and/or memory, and add imagination and play in creating a finished piece. I often start with a dark background such as black, blue or gray, because the shadows recede naturally from where I add color and light. Although I need glasses to see well, I do most of my work with my glasses off. I believe this helps me to access my right brain, bypassing the fussy part of me that can't see the forest for the trees, allowing my instincts for composition and color to come through. I use a combination of hard and soft pastels, with some areas blended with my fingers, and in some areas opting for more intense, directly applied colors and textures. I usually end up covering most of the paper, but let some of the background color show through for textural or color effect..
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