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Dawn Emerson
Dawn Emerson uses PanPastel as a tool for both pastel painting & mixed media that enables her to apply color & layer more creatively, physically & spontaneously. Dawn finds that PanPastel offers transparency that is not possible to achieve with a pastel stick, for her drawings, paintings, mixed media, image layering & print making.
“PanPastel Colors give me the freedom I need to explore new ways to use color, layering, and mark making in my work.
Used alone or in conjunction with stick pastels, PanPastel offers new opportunities for layering over many surfaces and media that stick pastels simply cannot be applied to. The Sofft Tools can act like a brush or palette knife to give the artist more ways to make marks and control pressure.
Because of the fine consistency of the pigments, PanPastel Colors can be erased, scraped through with various tools, or used with wet and dry media. In short, PanPastel affords the artist unlimited possibilities for layering and mixing colors in new ways to offer each artist new tools for expression.” - Dawn Emerson
About Dawn Emerson
Dawn Emerson is the author of the book “Pastel Innovations”. Her work conveys a life energy and movement that is a blend of graphic abstraction and experienced observation from nature. She is a successful gallery artist and workshop instructor.
Dawn grew up in Marblehead, Massachusetts. After graduating from Brown University with a BA in English/Minor in Art in 1977, she began a career in graphic design and illustration. She became a book designer and art director for an educational publisher in the Boston area, until leaving to head west with her young family and husband in 1985. It was in Salt Lake City she discovered a passion for teaching art to children, and she continued teaching in the public schools after moving to Central Oregon in 1991. In 1992 that she discovered the medium of pastel, and began taking workshops with well known pastel artists Sheila Reiman, Harley Brown, Albert Handell, Sally Strand, and others.
By 1997 she was winning major awards for her pastel work, writing articles for various art publications, and teaching her own workshops. Dawn has spent the past 26 years creating art, teaching, and experimenting in her Central Oregon studio to push the boundaries of the pastel medium.
In 2008 Dawn was introduced to printmaking by mentor Pat Clark. Printmaking led to new and exciting directions for dawn’s art expression and inspired the writing of a book titled “Pastel Innovations” in 2017 by NorthLight Publishers. Three new DVDs were also produced by NorthLight, making a total of 6 instructional DVDs which are now available.
Dawn’s work has been exhibited in many national exhibits, and is available through the Mockingbird Gallery in Bend, OR. Dawn is sought after as an art judge, workshop instructor, and inspiring demonstrator. Her passion is to help people find their own voice with art and to continue to grow as an artist.
Recent Posts:
Golden Artist Colors Acquires Two Revolutionary Professional Art Materials Brands — PanPastel® and Sofft® Tools
Golden Artist Colors, Inc. is delighted to announce the acquisition of two groundbreaking products, PanPastel® and Sofft® Tools. Co-Creators Ladd Forsline and Bernadette Ward, Colorfin LLC, have grown these products, originally introduced in 2007, into important companion products for pastel and mixed media artists alike.
Artist Q&A: Beverly Brown
Our latest Q&A is with New York City based artist Beverly Brown. We wanted to share her beautiful PanPastel paintings and to find out more about her creative process and why she uses PanPastel. Beverly used PanPastel Colors for all of the work shown below.
Artist Q&A: Benjamin Ward
My grandfather was a painter, illustrator, and professor. I grew up sitting on his lap watching him draw. It fascinated me. I had an amazing (and patient, ha) art teacher in high school that nurtured my abilities and helped me create a portfolio that was awarded several scholarships to major art schools.
Artist Q&A: Lora Murphy
Lora Murphy was born in Ireland and educated in Ireland, USA and Italy. Trained as an oil painter, she now works primarily in Encaustic and mixed media. Lora teaches workshops in Contemporary Portraiture in Encaustic throughout the world and is currently working on an E-course, due to be released this year. She divides her time between Ireland and Denmark and maintain studios in both countries.
