To be honest, I never thought I would fall in love with soft pastels. I've experimented with lots of art mediums and many still excite me today. But there is something quite different about soft pastels. Perhaps it's because they are so underestimated as an art medium, although pastels have been used by artists since the Renaissance. The oldest form of dry pigments are early cave paintings.

Because it's in a dry stick form, it is a perfectly versatile medium, requiring no brush, palette to mix on, no water is required and therefore no drying time. It's almost pure pigment with a tiny amount of binder, enough to form into a stick.

They offer a luminosity I've never seen in an art form before. Under a microscope, a pastel particle looks like a crystal with many facets, reflecting light through its color.

My current inspiration is from clouds and skies. Currently Arizona is in the midst of monsoon season. Thunder, lightning and rains bring amazing sunrises and sunsets combined with incredible skies filled with glorious cloud formations.

This is my latest painting titled 'Turbulent Sky'.