When a blank page is staring at us, it can be hard to simply start. We might have the impulse to draw something - anything! - but for some reason our brains are coming up, well… blank!

When this happens to me, I have a warm-up drawing process that reminds me to let go, have fun and not worry so much - and in this class I want to share it with you…

When I bought my first pack of oil pastels I didn’t know what to do with them. I wiggled them about on the white paper and they just looked…meh! They just weren’t clicking for me.

Until I tried them on black paper.

Oh my - all of a sudden they just started to make sense to me! And the thing that brought me the most freeing joy? Using the rainbow of colours, all together!

Oil pastels, it turns out, are pretty cool. They force us to be more loose with our gestures, they revel in our being imprecise. Being shorter sticks of goodness, our hand has to be nearer to the page to use them - and so scribbly movements become the go-to choice.

When I realised I could also use this process digitally, using the Oil Pastel Brush on the Procreate app (on iPad) it opened yet another way to experiment, even when I'm away from my art space.

The main realisation I had is that I didn’t need to create “masterpieces” with these pastels (real or digital!) - I could simply play.

That’s what I’m hoping you’ll do too!

Once you know this process it doesn’t take long to have a play and create a drawing. And as you do more, you get quicker and more instinctive in your colour choices. I tend to create one in about half an hour these days and so it acts as a great creative warm-up. If I’m low on time, I can still create something that looks pretty cool - and if I have more time I can use this warm-up to propel me into other projects.

This process is a lot of fun using real-life pastels, but having the option to try this process digitally in Procreate (on iPad) is another way to simply get going (if you have access to the app).

If you are a beginner artist this class is an encouragement to find the fun and to discover confidence in playing. It’s through play that we often find future ideas. If you don’t yet feel confident in drawing freehand, there are templates in the resources which can help you breathe easier. Using templates is a great way to get started, but they also help us (even when we become more confident) to not think too much about form but to instead get lost in the colour-play.

If you are a bit further in your art journey, but you feel like trying a new medium or kickstarting a fresh inspiration, this class is an encouragement to KEEP finding the fun. Sometimes we can lose our way a bit when we feel we should be able to create something but nothing is coming out. It’s ok to make something purely as experiment and for it to go nowhere else but that.

How to trace a template onto dark papers
That it’s ok if it looks messy at the start. It will still look marvellous by the end!
How to use the full rainbow of colours in your creations
How to build colours up from Dark to Light
How to use different marks to create varying fur textures

A pack of Oil Pastels. These come in lots of different sizes, but you don’t need to pay a lot of money on premium supplies. In class I am mostly using a 50-pack of Pentel pastels, but I also show how a 24-pack from WHSmith works well too. If you can find a pack with around 20 pastels in it, that’ll be enough to play really well with!
Black Paper. The paper I am using is a smooth 80gsm from Hobbycraft, so any you can find from your local craft/stationery supplier should do the trick.

Of course, if you have an iPad and the Procreate app, you can dive straight in to trying the Oil Pastel Brush!

Check out the Resources under the Project & Resources Tab. There you will find:

Animal Templates PDF - This provides reference images to draw from, as well as outline versions of each image that can be printed and traced. Images range from easier to a bit more challenging - so you can choose whichever one suits your mood today!
Colour Experiments PDF - This brief document offers some colour combinations you might like to try, if you are feeling a bit low on inspiration.
Step by Step Guide PDF - This breaks down the process and ensures you need make no copious notes as you go along - the info is right here! Also includes a link to a Bonus Real-Time video of the first demo so you can see every step.
(For PROCREATE) Animal Template PNGs and Reference Images Zip File - This zip pack provides individual PNG files of the reference outlines in white, which you can import into Procreate (to draw over), as well as the individual reference images, so you can import them into Procreate as part of the “Reference Image” function. There is a Guide included to show you how to use them in Procreate.

Want some feedback on any drawings you make? The Project Gallery is a great place to record your process and share your art with me and your classmates.

Do you have a question? Whether you are stuck on a part of the process or just want to chat about creativity, the Discussions Tab is available to you - I’m all ears! You can also message me on Instagram @gemmathepen or email me at hello@gemmathepen.com - I'm happy to help however I can.

Hi, I’m Gemma! I am an artist-maker who has a passion for learning new things and sharing creative joy. Over the years I have tried many creative pathways, and for a while I thought that not sticking to one thing made me lesser somehow - until I realised that being multi-passionate was my superpower!

From making puppets and playing with paint, to writing stories and playing the violin, I love to gift myself new passions. It doesn’t matter how well I do them - it’s about the exploration, the learning, the simple “having-a-go” joy.

My mantra is Nurture Your Curiosity, Fuel Your Creativity - because I know from experience that by allowing ourselves to stay curious, we can become better problem-solvers and, therefore, better creative thinkers. Creative variety is pure fuel, and fun too!

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