It was a happy day when I discovered that pastel artist Maggie Price (left) and her husband, artist Bill Canright, would be driving home to New Mexico from a workshop in State College, Pa., a trip that would take them right through Cincinnati, home to the editorial offices of The Pastel Journal, The Artist's Magazine, Watercolor Magic and North Light Books. I jumped at the opportunity to invite the popular workshop teacher (also our magazine's founder and first editor) to come to the office and share some of her pastel-painting expertise hands-on with a group of enthusiastic fine art editors and art directors. Much to my delight, Maggie was more than happy to add the stop to her itinerary!

Assembled for the big event yesterday (August 6) were The Pastel Journal's art and editorial team (that's me, Sarah, Jessica and Cindy) as well as four additional editors and art directors (from North Light Books, North Light Book Club and The Artist's Magazine)—even one of our advertising coordinators joined the group. Maggie began with an exciting demonstration of what she calls a brilliant underpainting technique. In this approach, she underpaints the big shapes of a painting with exaggerated color, then brushes the color with Turpenoid, lets it dry, and then starts working toward more realistic color. It was a perfect way to break through any timidity in the group, because as Maggie explained in our feature about her in the June issue, "Underpaintings are very freeing. They're loose and expressive. And, because it's just an underpainting, you can try anything and know if it doesn't work, you can fix it in the next stage." The brilliant-color approach worked quite well, I thought, for our art director's painting of Red Rock Canyon (see photo at left).

Maggie also showed us her seemingly magical techniques for painting moving water, still water and clouds. I was pretty happy with the cloud study (above) which I did using Unison and Terry Ludwig pastels on white Kitty Wallis paper.

And speaking of materials, the supplies for our workshop were provided thanks to VERY generous donations from Terry Ludwig Pastels and Jack Richeson Co., with additional materials supplied from Pastel Girault and Maggie too. I think I can speak for all nine participants when I say thanks for making this work day one of the most exhilarating and inspiring ever! As North Light's Editorial Director Jamie Markle put it: "This is the best Monday I've had in a long time!"

This is the kind of "work" we will all look forward to taking home!