Beginning Pastels II with Natasha Isenhour – G26050204
Have you tried your hand at pastels and now you’re ready to take that leap to learning more? Have you played with pastels in the past and felt like you didn’t know what to do with them? Well, here is your chance. This class is built as a follow-up to the Beginning Pastels 1 taught at Ghost Ranch in the Fall of 2025. If you have previous experience using pastels, or if you attended my class in the Fall, get ready to LEVEL UP! Why not dive in with me for 5 days of instruction to the incredible medium of pastel in studio at the incredible Ghost Ranch?
I will begin by giving you a brief review of what the medium is, how it’s used, the different types of pastels, and the supporting materials to paint on to get you off on the right footing. Once we warm up, I will provide images to you and guide you through the process of mark-making and creating paintings you can be excited to take home and share!
This class requires that you supply your own materials. I will provide a very specific list of materials to get, so that you can have your very best experience. Materials can make or break your “happy place.” I will not have student supplies on hand, so adherence to the list is critical for your success. This class is for beginner pastelists with minimal experience and up, and for those of you who are rusty and need to reboot your pastel prowess!
Instructor
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Natasha IsenhourContemporary American Realist Natasha Isenhour expresses her emotional response to unpopulated spaces with an edgy lonesome starkness that defines the very essence of her work in oil and pastel. Isenhour exhibits throughout the southwest and teaches several sold out workshops each year, both in plein air and studio.
Highlights of 2022 included an Award of Excellence in the Oil Painters of America Regional Exhibition in Dallas and a 5-week solo museum exhibition at the Taos Museum and Fechin Studio in Taos, NM. In Spring of 2023, Terry Ludwig Pastels LLC released “Natasha Isenhour Essential Alchemy Set of 60 pastels,” and she served a second year as faculty for PACE, Plein Air Convention and Expo in Denver. In August 23, she won another honorable mention in the OPA Summer Online Showcase. In 2024, she will be awards judge and workshop instructor for the Pastel Society of Colorado’s Mile High 30th International Exhibition and will be also teach a workshop at the IAPS, International Association of Pastel Societies Convention in NM.
Represented by: Ventana Fine Art, Santa Fe, NM and others.
Affiliations include: Signature Member of the Pastel Society of America, American Women Artists and Plein Air Painters of NM. Distinguished Member Pastel Society of NM. Member of Oil Painters of America, Salmagundi Art Club, NYC and others.