Win a print! My Artist’s Vision. A celebrity and an artist inspiration. Becoming the artist I always wanted. A muse-poem. Three articles on pastels.
Newsletter #3
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The Artist’s Blog of Marlene Breitenstein
Exploring the creative process: inspiration, techniques, challenges, results.
Welcome to my artist’s blog! I invite you to jump into the usually playful, occasionally painful, deep end of art-making, with me.
I publish a few times a month, sometimes more. My topics are of particular interest to other artists and photographers, collectors, and journalists … but of course, everyone is welcome.
Pick a post below, or subscribe to my RSS Feed.
You Always Wanted to Be an Artist
During this process of unlocking myself as an artist, I wrote the following joyous plea to myself. In it, I remember how good it felt to be a creative child, and to be spellbound by both seeing and creating art.
Make Pastel Sticks from Broken Pastels
Artist Tip! Did you know you can collect pastel dust and broken bits, and easily re-form sticks with it? Here’s a quick DIY guide on how to make pastel sticks from broken pastels.
Memento, a Poem
This short poem, Memento, was inspired by something remarkable. Written in response to a creative writing prompt—anything in 50 words, using the term “gossamer”—I include the back-story, too.
Working Safely with Pastels
A no-nonsense, straightforward guide to working safely with soft (chalk) pastels. I cut through conflicting information, draw on safety data from several pastel brands, and offer an inexpensive, highly effective solution for airborne pastel dust.
Experimenting with Painting on Photos: Pt. 4
In my fourth set of experiments with painting over fine art photographs, I had fun applying pastels to layers of gesso, textured in interesting ways with a heat gun. Learn about the process and my key takeaways.
Newsletter #2
My 2nd artist newsletter: A breakthrough! Also: being featured, mentors, copyright, photo overwhelm, and experimenting.
Experimenting with Painting on Photos: Pt. 3
My third set of experiments with painting over fine art photographs: I apply clear gesso over six photo papers, test pastels on the gesso, and use a heat gun to texturize the gesso. Learn about the process and my key takeaways.
Experimenting with Painting on Photos: Pt. 2
I continue my experiments with combining painting with photography, using soft pastels. In this post, I devise a plan, and share my second set of experiments. Learn about the process and my key takeaways.
A Featured Photographer
📸 I’m pleased to announce my photo, of a sun-dappled Swiss mountain hut, was featured in an article on rural photos, by Glass! I dive into why rural is important to me, share a few more of my submissions, plus 18 terrific photos by other Glass photographers.
Artist and Photographer
Learn about Marlene here >>
Find Me on Social Media
No account needed to view!
I support social media that’s independent of the big dogs.
Are you thinking, "What? I never heard of those."
Okay, since you actually clicked on this, and I’m a bit of an ambassador for things I believe in, I’ll explain:
Mastodon is the most engaging, refreshing social media I’ve experienced. It is a social network based on a non-profit, ad-free model, designed to allow the user fine control over what they choose to see and who they interact with, while retaining full data ownership. It may be smaller, but that’s actually a benefit!
Glass is an image-focused social network, designed by and for photographers, using a subscription-based model, which also provides full user and data control.
Where Am I?
Sometimes in the Washington, DC area.
Sometimes I’m traveling elsewhere.
Otherwise I’m near Landau in der Pfalz, in the Südliche Weinstrasse (Southern Wine Route) region of Germany, characterized by endless vineyards, and bordered by mountains covered with fairy-tale forests. France is 25 minutes away.