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From the Editor

Cover Image

I must first of all apologise to all our readers

for the sparseness of this issue of the
Scribbler. The Scribbler teams individual and
personal activities seem to have needed our
attention at the same time as each other,
which has led to a limitation on the time to
put this issue together.

Splash
By
Dolores Saul
The Scribbler Team
This issue is made by:
Jim Humphreys,
Editor, layout
Ruth Mann,
Proofreading
Dorothea Schulz,
Writing, Translation, proofreading
Rosie Farrell
Proofreading.

This is actually an opportune time to remind

our members that the Scribbler team are all
volunteers, and that it would help us
enormously for members to supply us with
articles, or ideas for inclusion in the magazine.
The articles from the latest winners of the
Get Dusty competition, Lynn Howarth and
Dolores Saul should appear in the June issue.

the references for your own work. Also join in

with the Library challenge, see page 8 for
details.
In this issue we introduce you to a very talented
pastel artist, Mathieu Weemaels from Belgium,
whose use of mirrors and unusual viewpoints
provide a refreshing look to intrigue and keep
the viewers interest. Watch him at work in his
demonstration video on You Tube, a link can be
found in the article Through the Looking Glass
on page 6.
Finally from me, another call for members to
send in pictures of your work which can then be
included in the members gallery. Help us to help
and keep you informed.

Keep happy, stay dusty

The Reference Image library is gradually

increasing in content. Please take a look and
join in by submitting more images, and using

Contact:
scribbler@pastelguild.org

Jim Humphreys

Inside this issue

Page 3
April Get Dusty Winners

Page 8
Library Challenge

Page 6
Through the Looking Glass
Mathieu Weemaels

PAGE 9
Get Dusty Schedule

PAGE 11
Meet our new Members

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Members News

PAGE 12
Members Gallery

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Get Dusty
The winner of the April Get Dusty is

Dolores Saul

Splash

There is a lot of action in this work. Movement and drama! Great work on the
feathers. There is an excellent sense of recession in the background and the water
and feathers have been created with vibrant confident strokes. In my opinion the
most delicious part of this painting is where the feathers meet the water and the
edges are lost. Fantastic water!

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SECOND PLACE
Asian Beauty by Dolores Saul
This is a beautiful portrayal of a
Mandarin duck. Wonderful work
on the different types of feathers,
they are absolutely fantastic,
especially the tail feathers and the
wing! I Love the contrast of the
detailed work in the bird and the
plain background which works
really well as contrast. The artist
has made full use of the paper
colour by leaving the background
uncovered and has created a
wonderful 3D effect. The ground
the bird stands on is merely
suggested but looks solid and real.

THIRD PLACE
Cocorico by Marie-France Oosterhof

A joyous impression of a Chicken,

focusing on the important area,
the head. I can feel the joy of the
artist in every pastel stroke.
Playful and painterly, feels very
free and has great movement! A
birdie with an attitude! Oh that
red in the wattle and comb!

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HONOURABLE MENTIONS

Wise Owl by Jim Humphreys

Up close and personal, this is a dynamic crop
and most effective. The feather detail here is
so well done with tiny marks and squiggles
which just read so right. There's a lovely
variation and a lot of detail in the work with
the feathers. The feathers also offer a lot of
direction, helping the eye to move around the
painting.

Lord of the Rings By Dorothea Schulz

A bold honest depiction of a Mallard
Drake, with a simple and convincing
composition. The iridescence on the
head is beautifully described, as are
the ripples on the water and the
reflection. There is a wonderful sense
of calmness in this scene.

Baby Chicken By Kerstin Birk

Cute little chicks. The softness of the

background really enhances the fluffiness of
the baby feathers. Lovely colour harmony
too.

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Through the looking glass

Meet Belgian artist

Mathieu Weemaels
Introduction by Dorothea Shulz
Sometimes you get the impression that Facebook is
mainly a showcase for photos of kittens or cute dogs.
But from time to time it lets you discover something
new and exciting. A post from PSA president Jimmy
Wright about an exhibition by Brussels-born artist
Mathieu Weemaels brought me to an empty, slightly run
-down townhouse where every room, even the
bathroom was filled with paintings. (Photo1)
Mathieu Weemaels (http://www.mathieuweemaels.be)
studied art in Brussels and first started drawing comic
strips which are very popular in Belgium, but he quickly
turned to drawing and painting. He soon gained
recognition. In 2001 he won the first prize of the Belgian
Royal Academy. His works are shown in galleries all over
Europe.
To describe his
One of the exhibition rooms
work as
representational doesnt do him justice; his sense for abstract
shapes and his unusual viewpoints transcend the figurative. His
intimist still life paintings show only a few simple, everyday
objects; bowls, plates, some flowers. His palette is muted with
a few surprising splashes of blue or red. Mirrors play a
dominant role in his set-ups. They not only add an element of
geometry but allow us a glimpse of an unknown, parallel
world.
I had the chance to talk to the artist during my visit. He told me
that he used to draw almost exclusively in soft pastels, whose
subtle tones, delicacy and luminosity seemed to be perfectly
adapted to the intimate world of (his) pictures. He learned
from his teachers how to make his own pastel sticks and later
developed his own recipes, using chalk talc powder, pigments,
water and a bit of oil. He works mostly with his own pastels; it
une journe l'atelier
allows him to exactly get the shades that suit him best.
For his bigger paintings he works on Zerkall, a mould-made paper which is normally used for etching
(http://www.zerkall.com/English/Paper/Planopapiere.E1.html). For his small formats he uses
Fabriano paper (http://
fabriano.com/en/180/
tiziano_pads). He works on a
white support and doesnt
underpaint; he never mixes
techniques.
Mathieu very graciously
offered to post a video about
his pastel painting approach
for us on YouTube (https://
www.youtube.com/watch?
v=Zk91RrXmrnw).
Mathieus pastel set up

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The artist talks about his work:

There is nothing premeditated about my work. It is
the fruit of a daily involvement in painting and
drawing. I am in a sense the observer of my own
activity and sometimes
only understand what I
have done much later.
Over the years a
number of themes have
emerged and evolved.
The origins of my first
pictures are to be found
in the interior world of
my studio: simple,
everyday objects, some
of which just happened
to be there, others
were brought in on a
whim or were the result
of discoveries made in
roses
the course of the work:
candles, jackets hung on a nail, pieces of cloth,
tables...,Although I have always been drawn to
representation, my intention has never been to copy exactly
what I see, but rather to make an expressive work,
fruits de saison
independent of its
sources.
Fundamentally the real subject of my corners of the
studio is silence, solitude, and beauty, emanating from
the objects, perceptible only when you watch and wait.
The cold Belgian light is an important element, bringing
with it something mysterious, a kind of nostalgia.
Mirrors occur frequently
in my compositions. I
have always very much
liked to see reality
reflected, creating the
illusion of another
possible world, another
reality close at hand. I
have gradually developed
the idea of using mirrors
like windows, or like a
picture within a picture, a
link with abstraction: a
deregulated space in the
Composition au store
heart of the demanding
environment of figurative painting.
(Mathieu Weemaels, Huiles et pastels)

th aux fruits
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Library Challenge Spring 2015

The Reference Image library (LIB) is a recent addition to the PGE website. It already contains a good
selection of copyright free images for members to use. There are different galleries for landscape,
seascape, cityscapes, animals, and so on. Please read the rules which can be found in the General
section of the forum.
To help in raising awareness of the LIB, Dorothea Schulz set a challenge for members to have a go at,
which is still open for more entries. The challenge is to paint your version of any of the photos shown
below, which you can then enter through the Get Dustyuser panelLIB Challengeyour entry
category. The winner will get Mitchell Albala's book 'Landscape painting'. No time to delay. The closing
date for entries is June 15th 2015, we are looking forward to plenty of entries!
Not yet a LIB member? It's very easy to join! The library rules can be found in the General Forum right at
the beginning. Then just send a PM to Frankemmes or Theodorablau and state that you have read and
accepted the library rules .

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Get Dusty Schedule

MAY: Category, Portrait or still life -Theme, Childhood memories. Deadline 25th
May 2015
Comment Toys, sweets, a childish activity. Think back to your early years and be
creative!
JUNE: Category, Unclassified. Theme, Interpretation - 'The sands of time were falling from your fingers and your thumb, and you were waiting for the miracle, the
miracle to come' Deadline 25th June 2015
Comment Let these beautiful lyrics by Leonard Cohen inspire you. What will it
be, portrait, landscape, abstract - who knows?
JULY/AUGUST: Free choice. Deadline 25th August 2015
Commentlet the juices of inspiration flow during the heady days of summer.
SEPTEMBER: Category: Landscape -Theme, Bad weather. Deadline 25th September
2015
CommentA landscape, seascape, skyscape or cityscape in rain, fog, snowstorm.
OCTOBER: Category, Animals -Theme, animals in their natural habitat. Deadline
25th October 2015
Comment - For example, frogs in a pond, a dragonfly on a water lily, a lion in the savannah etc. An animal portrait with a vague background will not do for this challenge!
NOVEMBER: Category, Still life plus! - Theme, Florals. Deadline 25th November
2015
CommentCan be flowers in a field, park or garden, or a close up of a bloom or
blooms. Must not contain pots/vases, other still life elements etc.
DECEMBER: Winter free choice. Deadline 25th January 2016
CommentUse your Christmas gift pastels to produce a stunning work of art.

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Members News
Members Ruth Mann and Julie Hodgson have their open studio
starting this weekend. We are open under the umbrella of the
Norfolk and Norwich Open Studios.
We will be open from 10am to 5pm on the 23rd to 25th May and
the 29th to 31st May. Please come and visit us if you can!
All the details can be found here :
http://www.nnopenstudios.org.uk/artists/details/662
Shown below are two of the paintings on show.

Sunflower
Ruth Mann

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Ashleys Girls
Julie Hodgson

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Welcome to our New Members

Kathrin Heitbreder
I have enjoyed having a change of circumstances and location, and am at present living in a very small town in the middle of
Germany. Due to my daughter growing up and needing a more normal and stable life, moving to a different location is no longer
easy.
I have always loved painting, drawing and sketching, but
I never graduated to university. Instead my studies took
another direction and as a result my art suffered, and I
stopped drawing and sketching altogether.
About twenty years later, I suddenly found the urge to
resume with my art, which led to an explosion of acrylic,
free, abstract paintings which made me long for more. I
knew that I wanted to do more realistic work , test my
abilities; so I did and this is when I found pastels. . I
hated them. For weeks and months of struggling with
exercises (saturated paper, awful colours, no control, all
with horrible consequences...- no thanks). But somehow
there had been a kind of breakthrough, and suddenly it
just felt right. After trying different techniques,
materials and styles I returned to pastels some weeks
ago; so here I am!
I am basically a self taught artist, and I am just thankful
that I found the Pastel Guild of Europe.

Giovanni Bargigia

I was Born in Milan and I have lived in Milan's

hinterland for some years.
I was introduced to pastels through the work of
the Italian painter Aldo Fornoni, and as a result,
soft pastels have become my preferred medium
to work with.
I enjoy playing with colours, light, shapes and
transparencies, of nature . . . . by my
interpretation.
Now that my working life has finished, I can
enjoy my passion for drawing and music full
time.
I was very pleased to find The PGE, as pastels
are not very widely used in Italy, and I am
looking forward to exchanging experiences, and
to welcoming all comments on my paintings.

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Members Gallery

Dorothea Schulz
Ruth Mann

Jill Harker

Kat Pyatakova

Clea Muller

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Members Gallery

Annika Ostman

Dolores Saul

Ghislaine Fabre
Frank M Schwietzer

The Scribbler team needs members to submit their paintings for inclusion in future
issues.
Good quality photos of your work are the only requirement, no other rules apply.
Send your pictures to scribbler@pastelguld.org, or alternatively post them in your
members profile gallery.

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