The Artistry of Oil Pastels

A special presentation, The Artistry of Oil Pastels, is scheduled for Saturday, June 21st, 1:00-2:30 in the Elgin Artspace Gallery, 51 South Spring
Street, Elgin, Illinois 60120. 

Three celebrated oil pastel artists will discuss and share the
unique attributes of the oil pastel medium and demonstrate effective techniques
for creating quality paintings.  The
panel will include George Bruce, George
Shipperley, and Carol Zack. 

The presentation is part of the Yellow House Artists  exhibit,  entitled Rhythm in Color which is open through June 28 in the gallery.  The exhibit features 96 original paintings
representing 29 artists.   The gallery hours are Sunday, 1:00-4:00; Monday-Thursday,
9:00-5:30; Saturday, 9:00-3:00.  Art will
be for exhibit and sale.

Yellow
House Artists is a group of oil pastel artists who promote both
their art and the medium. The group originated with 17 oil pastel artists who
had a gallery in a yellow house during the 2007 St. Charles Fine Art Show.  The group has since grown to include nearly
50 members who are interested in creating and showing their work as well as
informing the public about the qualities of this little known medium.  Members of Yellow House Artists use
unique techniques, taking advantage of the special qualities of the
medium. 

George
Shipperley, an artist with an emphasis on originality,
creativity and color, specializes in oil pastel and oil stick.  In addition to being recently inducted into
the Fox
Valley Arts Hall of Fame, Shipperley holds the distinction and
prestigious honor of being the first awarded Signature Member of the Oil
Pastel Society.  Fans of oil pastel
around the country consider him the “guru” of the oil pastel medium. Currently
featured in an 8-page article in the July edition of The Artist’s Magazine, Shipperley
has received more than 20 awards and recognitions. His paintings can be found
in galleries and corporate collections throughout the Chicago area and northern
Illinois as well as in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Florida, and New Mexico and by
appointment at his home gallery in Aurora, Illinois.  Shipperley has been an instructor and mentor
for many of the artists in Yellow House Artists, which led to
the formation of the group.  (http://georgeshipperley.com)

Bruce and Zack learned oil pastel techniques from Shipperley
and now are both teachers at the Fine Line in St. Charles and the DuPage Art
League in Wheaton.

For George Bruce,
painting is a passion.  With a lifelong
interest in drawing and art, the southern Illinois farm boy got hooked on
watercolor while studying for an Associate Degree in Architecture.  Bruce, of Naperville, went on to receive a
degree in Graphic Design/Advertising, working in the corporate world as a
package designer and part owner of a packaging and marketing communications
firm in Chicago.  As retirement
approached, he picked up watercolor and eventually evolved into the world of
oil pastels.  Bruce enjoys the creative
challenge of both mediums and has developed effective techniques for combining
the use of the two mediums.  His
paintings continue to evolve in most creative ways. (http://www.proudfoxgallery.com/bruce-george.html)

An award winning professional artist, Carol Zack currently specializes in both soft and oil pastel. She
finds that the oil pastel medium is perfect for creating and interpreting large
floral studies, impressionistic landscapes, and gestural and traditional figurative
studies that include formal commissioned portraits.   She notes that
the easy application, blending, and bright color along with the direct
spontaneous approach for applying the oil pastel medium is
captivating.   With two degrees in art, Zack, of Elgin, has
experience teaching at the high school and college level, as well as working in
merchandizing and corporate training.  She is passionate about painting
and teaching others about the visual arts.  (http://zackartistry.com)

Oil
pastels were developed in the 1940’s at the request of Pablo Picasso.  He wanted a medium with the qualities of oil
but with ease of application and portability. 
Pure pigment is suspended in inert mineral oil, formed into sticks with
a color palette much like oil paint. 
Colors can be layered and blended, smeared or smudged, using fingers,
some type of tool, or left as applied, all at the artist’s discretion.  The works are generally framed under glass to
protect the surface image.

More information about Yellow
House Artists  can be found on their web
site: www.yellowhouseartists.com.