Painting the Landscape in Pastel

Known for his use of luminous color, Albert Handell, whose lush landscapes light up these pages, provides lucid instructions to help first-time pastelists achieve impressive results as soon as they begin working with the medium. After reviewing pastel supplies, the author discusses landscape composition and how to establish large shapes first, abstract certain areas, develop a focal point, work from dark to light, and capture the illusion of reality through color. Stepped demonstrations isolate specific landscape aspects, showing how the pastelist depicts skies, trees, buildings, water, rocks, woods, snow, and light. "The authors systematically and thoroughly explain how to work with pastels. Discussions on choosing a subject and using photography as a reference tool provide helpful and inspiring advice to the beginner as does the detailed commentary on the types of pastels and papers available, the organization of a pastel palette, and such issues as storage, packing, and framing."Kliatt, November 2000

Albert Handell is a Master Pastelist of the Pastel Society of America, and was the third living artist to be inaugurated into the Pastel Hall of Fame. Since 1961, he has had over 30 one-man shows, and has received over 70 prizes and awards. Handell’s work is in numerous private, public, and museum collections. He is the author of several books on pastel and oil painting, including Oil Painting Workshop and Intuitive Light, and teaches several workshops annually. He lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.


Anita Louise West began painting at an early age and was awarded a scholarship to the Kansas City Art Institute in painting. Her work is represented in galleries throughout the U.S. She lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.