AWARD-winning artist Catherine E Inglis completed a trilogy of soft pastel demonstrations at Keighley Art Club after travelling from beyond York.

The subject of her latest talk was her own photograph of Upper Langdale in the Lake District, which has been visited by Prince Charles whose watercolour paintings have been published.

There are many types of pastels which Cath explained more are mostly chalk-based with added binders and colour pigments.

She has visited the ‘small cottage’ producers of the “Unison” brand.

Other quality pastels are “Contis” which Cath uses for animal and human portraits and “Rembrandt” for the works. Rembrandt is creamier.

“Schminky” is more velvety but quite expensive and is used more sparingly. The fifth variety is “Sennelier” whose pastels are dark in colour and useful for shadows and deeper colours.

Powder and oil pastels are available, as are other brands, by visiting art shops or Cath’s and other people’s websites.

The shadows on Cath’s photograph were quite deep. She advised us to take photographs in the early morning or late evening for the best shadows and lights. Mid-day photographs will be bright and may restrict the ease of painting the scene.

Several members of the art club completed a card to obtain an artists’ magazine which Cath has written articles for, and which is published bimonthly.

Cath specialises in commissioned portraits, but she also brought a beautiful sunset and dramatic seascape as well as packs of pastels, books and greetings cards produced from her work.

Workshops are run from Catherine’s Skirpenbeck studio or at Bishop Wilton Village Hall, and she demonstrates to art groups teaches and tutors online. She appears in the Who’s Who of Art. Call 01759 372629 for details of Cath’s programmes.

During her Keighley Art Club demonstration, Cath used black glass paper, beginning with the sky and clouds, blending with the ball of her hand and working down. The basic outlines were marked and the direction of light decided.

Deftly and more quickly than she preferred, she swept the base layer with the side of the appropriate pastoral, working bit by bit to build up a painting.

Cath used bottle green, dark blue, dark brown and purple to create strong depths and shadows. Black is too harsh and dark.

Pale greens and lilacs assisted in creating distance with darker shades in the foreground. The deepness of Cath’s wall made the rest of the picture appear brighter. She stressed her tip of light, medium and dark.

Adding pink to the landscape is not traditional but here we saw this pale colour adding highlights and interest. It also created pebbles on the rough access road and was very effective.

Finally, Cath drew freehand, sweeping lines with pastoral points to add fence posts, a gate and barbed wire to complete the composition and to emphasise the perspective and eyelevel.

Visit cathinglis.com or Keighley Art Club’s Facebook page for further information. Our programme is now available.

Our permanent exhibition in Keighley’s Picture House cinema remains. The exhibition of work by Keighley and Bingley art groups, upstairs at Cliffe Castle Museum in Keighley, finishes on November 8.

Please try to support the arts section in Keighley Show’s handicraft tent on September 2. Call Mrs Walbank after 5pm on 01535 667111 for further information.