Work in progress... Pear, Crab apple, and blossoms..

pastel drawing..

 I started this painting on a board toned with transparent oxide red, and thought I would try using pastel for an underpainting, I colored in the drawing with the pastels and then used a brush with turpentine to wet and spread the pastel color...

pastel set with turpentine

 Once it was dry, I began with oil paint.   It was interesting to try using the pastels to start, not needing to mix colors, I just chose a pastel close to the color I wanted.  It worked out ok, but I don't know if I'll use this method each time I paint. It was fun to try.

oil painting..

This is the oil painting in progress, you can still see the reddish ground on the right side of the apple.  I really like the red tone underneath showing through the other colors! It gave the whole painting a sense of warmth and airiness... if thats a word! lol,