Essentials for Pastel Painting Overseas

Pastels have the advantage of requiring no solvents or water to use, but they are inherently heavy. Before I travel overseas to an unfamiliar destination, I research the areas that I want to visit, look at pictures, weather statistics, etc., to try to get an idea of the kinds of colors I may need to take. I know that I can’t take every tint and shade of each color, so I have to try to predict what I will need when I am there, and what can be left in the studio.

For my last trip to Tuscany in October, I knew I would need colors that work with the sere grasses and fall vineyard colors of the Tuscan countryside, as well as additional colors for the stone architecture and perhaps some bright flowers here and there. By careful and somewhat ruthless selection, I worked my inventory down from 500 studio colors to just 60 for the trip, mixed between soft and hard. I converted my Open Box M wooden oil painting pochade box to a pastel painting box by cutting a piece of thin sheet foam to fit ove…