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On June 15, the OPS membership will be informed who the winners are in our very first international oil pastel competition. There was an outstanding response to this show by artists from all over the world. "Beginnings" represents the art of 32 Society members with 88 entries in the show! All of the entries will be available for viewing on that date. Thanks to everyone for making our first show a very successful one!

What attracted you to the oil pastel medium? What made you first pick them up?

I read a book about drawing, which somehow promoted the idea of using or being able to use as many mediums as you can. It was said to be good for choosing the right medium for a given subject matter or using a mixed mediums approach. That reading actually convinced me to try several mediums before I stumbled upon oil pastels. I liked them enough to use as my main medium since. I especially appreciate that happy cross between drawing and painting aspect of using them.

Ann Tucker is compiling an extensive list of information for us about the oil pastel medium, for beginners especially. Each month new ideas, helpful hints, etc., will be added to this page. Click here for Ann's Oil Pastel Primer

Linda Shantz, Equine Artist, had her oil pastel painting “Mika” (14 x 11) juried into the Art Show at the Dog Show in Wichita Kansas. The Art Show at the Dog Show ran from February to April 2005.

Linda Shantz also just recently learned that her OP “Head of the Lake” (which some of our members may remember from a WC thread!) was featured on the cover of the most recent Chronicle of the Horse, a US magazine that covers horse sport.

The Artists Magazine

The Artists Magazine is running an ad under a new section created especially for us - Societies - (page 86 of the June issue). It features information about the Oil Pastel Society and our website and will run for the months of June, July and August. We encourage members to support the magazine by purchasing it and looking for the ad and giving feedback. We could also encourage member's to submit articles to the Artist's Magazine for oil pastels, etc.

The OPS is providing this information as a service to our members. No endorsement is intended. The artist assumes responsibility for reading the prospectus and determining eligibility. Just a reminder - check out the Arkansas Pastel Society's show - deadline for slides is August 15, 2005. http://www.arkpastel.com

One way that all of you can help to make the Oil Pastel Society more visible is by placing a link from your personal website to the Society's home page or you can link to your artist gallery from your homepage. Feel free to use the new society logo as a graphic on your links page! Below is the reference and the logo which has been downsized. Copy and paste the reference into one of your web pages and download the graphic and upload to your site. Thank you...

We are always in need of tips and articles to share with everyone. If you would like to contribute a tip or write a short article, please contact our Newsletter Editor, Ann Tucker, at newsletter@oilpastelsociety.com

If you have a new email address, please notify membership@oilpastelsociety.com so that our records can be updated and you don't miss out on any of the news!

And don't forget, Cafe Press has items for sale featuring our beautiful OPS logo and can be seen at: