Oil Pastel Recommendations 2024
Oil Pastel Supply Recommendations
Oil pastels, with their intense pigmentation and creamy texture, have been captivating artists for generations. Developed in the early 20th century, oil pastels offer a versatile medium suitable for a wide range of applications. Unlike traditional soft pastels, oil pastels contain non-drying oil and wax binders, resulting in a smooth, vibrant stick that glides effortlessly across various surfaces, including paper, canvas, and wood.
Whether you're a seasoned artist or a beginner eager to explore new mediums, oil pastels offer endless possibilities for experimentation. Some good options for young artists are brands like Crayola or Sakura Cray-pas. If you want to go a step up, I think one of the best buys is the Gallery Brand of oil pastels. Professional artists seem to agree that the Sennelier brand is among the best and I splurged on these crazy beautiful hand made oil pastels from Japan called big baby oil pastels.
One of the most appealing aspects of oil pastels is their ability to easily blend with their almost lipstick like texture. Artists can easily blend colors together to create smooth gradients and subtle transitions, allowing for experimentation with layering and mixing to achieve desired effects. If you or your student is someone that doesn’t like to blend with their fingers, cotton swabs, tortilions, and blending stumps can aid in the blending process. A heavier paper with some surface texture is helpful to grab the color. I like this Canson brand.
I linked all the pics to Amazon because honestly, ever since my local art shop left town it's the easiest place to order from. However I would always price compare to Blick - or even Walmart and Target that sometimes carry art supplies. As with most things art, you can really get caught up in the excitement of new materials and those things add up fast (at least that's what happens to me!)