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‘The light is lovely at all times of day’ alignments, constantly checking angles – has become instinctive. Although she also works in watercolour and oils, Felicity is best known for her pastel paintings. She’s an elected member of the Pastel Society and was the inaugural winner of The Artist prize at the society’s annual exhibition earlier this year, awarded for a group of her Indian paintings. ‘Being able to work quickly has been a great asset on my trips to India,’ she says. ‘For example, the light changes really, really fast. If you’re attracted by the sunshine and shadows on a building, you need to capture that pattern first, because it will look very different half an hour later. The Old Palace at Juna Mahal (above) is quite a complicated structure and, very unusually for me, I had to go back on a second afternoon to finish the picture with the sun in the same position. ‘Sometimes, on a tour, returning to a scene so quickly isn’t possible. Once, I had
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The Old Palace at Juna Mahal, pastel on Colourfix paper, 17⫻18in (43⫻45.5cm)
Felicity’s tips for travelling light Travelling abroad on a painting trip requires careful thought about equipment. Felicity makes a folder from two pieces of foam core board taped together, of a size to fit into the bottom of a suitcase. It makes a good, rigid drawing board, as well as means of storing completed paintings. She uses a Frank Herring lightweight folding easel, with a tray attachment for art materials. On tour, Felicity wraps her finished pastel paintings in newspaper, taped to prevent shifting. ‘If you feel once you’re home that too much dust has come off, you can refresh it, but I have never really found that, ’ she says. Pastel can be an excellent medium for plein-air painting. There is no need to take whole sticks of pastels: Felicity breaks off pieces equivalent to about a third of a full stick, although they may well get broken into even smaller pieces later. Some manufacturers, including Sennelier, Unison and Rembrandt now produce half-stick pastels, and these would serve as well. She takes approximately 100 colours, divided between four shallow cosmetic tubs with screw-on lids – 25 darks, 25 lights, and 25 each of warm and cool mid-tones. The tubs also contain ground rice to keep the colours clean and separate. ‘Wrapped in a plastic bag, these tubs stack well in the corner of a suitcase,’ she says, ‘yet they are quick to lay out when working. This kit has been with me on all my painting trips for over 12 years, and I wouldn’t be without it.’
November 2012
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