Posted on January 10, 2026, in 2026, An Artist's Life, Creative Process, Studio, Working methods and tagged adjusting, adjustments, advance, agreed, always, appear, appreciative, areas, around, artists, “Magisterial”, “New York Times”, better, circuits, collectors, colors, comments, composition, countless, creating, creator, details, determine, elements, ensure, ensuring, especially, exactly, exhibition, finished, fired, formal, guided, harmoniously, increasingly, intricate, intriguing, looking, mentioned, Nan Goldin, painting, pastel painting, perhaps, pleasure, produce, properties, question, reacting, recall, recede, refine, require, result, review, shared, something, stated, strive, Studio, surprised, thinking, three-dimensional, Vedica Art Studios and Gallery, viewers, viewing, working, writer. Bookmark the permalink. Comments Off on Q: What kind of internal conversations do you tend to have when you are in the process of making art? (Question from Vedica Art Studios and Gallery).
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barbararachkoscoloreddust.com 
Q: What kind of internal conversations do you tend to have when you are in the process of making art? (Question from Vedica Art Studios and Gallery)
Jan 10
Posted by barbararachkoscoloreddust
A: When standing at my easel creating a pastel painting, I focus on formal properties: composition, shape, color, and line. I always strive to produce a painting I’ve never seen before. Even as (perhaps especially as) the creator, I want to be surprised by the final result. My studio days are spent thinking, looking, reacting, and adjusting colors and composition as I refine increasingly tiny details, ensuring all elements work harmoniously. I determine which areas need to recede or advance, which require intricate details to appear three-dimensional, and which are better left as flat areas of color.
These countless adjustments ensure viewers’ eyes are guided around the finished painting in intriguing ways. I often recall something collectors of my pastel paintings shared: they mentioned a New York Times review of a Nan Goldin exhibition, in which the writer stated, “All of the pleasure circuits are fired in looking.” The collectors agreed this is exactly how they feel when viewing my work. Artists live for appreciative comments like these!
Comments are welcome!
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About barbararachkoscoloreddust
Barbara’s thoughts on art, the creative process, soft pastel, the inspiration she finds in travel, what it’s like to be an artist in New York City, and other wisdom for artists as we travel our solitary and sometimes lonely roads.