Pastel can be used wet and/or dry on canvas – without treatment the surface takes one or two layers. You can add drawing/details to a canvas with pastel or create an entire work with
pastel. Experiment with your pastels to see how they react to being wet with water as they
will react similarly when sprayed with Matt Spray (used to protect drawings and pastels for collaging) and Spray varnish. Demo – pastel pencils on canvas – this old work has been covered with texture
paste, a glaze of acrylic paint, the birds sketched in with pastel pencil, then the whole canvas covered with clear AS pastel primer. Demonstrate – pastel pencils.
Demo – soft dry pastel on canvas – one layer of pastel establishing composition –
covered with clear AS pastel primer – demonstrate next layer establishing soft
atmosphere behind silhouetted trees.
Demo – on canvas textured with tissue paper applied with Atelier Binder Medium,
then covered with yellow acrylic paint, and lastly a layer of clear AS primer ,
demonstrate drawing in of ducks.
Tips on working with pastel on canvas:
 Where high pigment intensity is planned, keep the white of the canvas clear
underneath. White can always be re-created however, by covering any
specific area with gesso.
 Ensure the layers of pastel are not thick. The varnish needs to dissolve the
pastel into the canvas and thick areas of pastel may not be dissolved, leading
to cracking and flaking off the canvas over time.
 To change the colour of a pastel primer, use acrylic inks, adding to the primer
a few drops at a time and stirring.
 Apply the primer with a wide bristle brush using a crisscross stroke so that
there are no thick deposits of the primer on these textured edges. For a smoother finish, go over the surface with a sponge while the primer is still wet.  Never introduce water into the primer through a wet brush or mixing in water
with the primer. The primer will thicken if left standing in your studio over a prolonged time so use Atelier Thin Medium to reconstitute the primer to the original consistency.