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| Working from nature
or her own photographs, Donna paints intimate and panoramic
views of magical places. These can be around the corner, across
the state, or farther away. Early morning or late afternoon
are her favorite times to find paintings. The light enchants
whatever it touches, making colors more intense and bringing
to light small details that are lost at other times of day.
Donna also paints animals. Cats with their mysterious ways and
independent attitudes are probably her favorites.
Working on sanded papers, she starts with either
a wash of color, and underpainting of acrylic, or hard pastels
brushed with turpenoid or alcohol. She uses very hard to very
soft pastels, as well as pastel pencils. Donna works quickly
laying in broad expanses of color, finishing with small details.
She loves the immediacy of pastels and the intense color and
glow possible with them.
Although Donna has had no formal art training,
her workshop experiences began with a summer class in sketching
that culminated with a pastel painting. In 1991 she began taking
community education classes in drawing with Del Wieding at Texas
Lutheran College. since then her training has consisted of reading
art technique books and magazines and several week-long workshops
with Larry Blovits, Doug Dawson, and Steve Napper, all master
pastelists.
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"Cactus Flowers"
Pastel
12" x 16"
"Cactus in Abstract"
Pastel
12" x 16"
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