This painting,' A Pastel Castle in Scotland' captures the essence of the most impressive National Trust Visitor Attraction in Ayrshire , Scotland.
Frame size 68 cm. x 56 cm.
Image size 52 cm. x 58 cm.
The artist JHWinter painted it while working in the Castle Gallery with three other artists, back in 2016. It was a wonderful experience where for two days a week the artists would paint the castle, its grounds and its views. People would come to visit from cruise ships and buy artworks with their holiday spending money!
The painting in pastels, started life as a quick watercolour from observation on quality watercolour paper. Fascinated with the vast array of textures JHWinter worked into the dry painting with chalk pastels.
This artwork shows a castle setting with a dramatic sky. The composition draws you in with fellow visitors, a girl and her mother. You feel tempted to look over the wall and are filled with anticipation for the castle and the gardens.
Does it beckon you to actually visit Culzean Castle in Ayrshire, Scotland, a National Trust treasure?
A variety of marks can be seen creating movement in the passing of the clouds, which have been made with directional strokes. The castle walls look old yet solid and the way the cultivated garden has been rendered is a delightful dance of vegetation captured in chalk pastel. This pastel castle painting is a fine example of the artists' skill in capturing the atmosphere of the imposing castle setting.
Please note the vertical reflections in the glass, top centre and top right of the image were unavoidable while taking the photograph.
