Welcome

Hi! Welcome to my site. My name is Paul deMarrais. I am a pastel artist and workshop instructor. I also manufacture my own line of hand made artist soft pastels and make a premium sanded surface for pastel. Over the past thirty years I have done a great deal of experimenting in nearly every facet of pastel and I wish to share what I have learned with fellow pastel artists. I've assembled articles I have written about pastel and hope this information will prove useful to you!

You can find information in the products section about my hand made pastels and about a new sanded surface for pastel that I know you will enjoy as much as I do.

If you are new to pastel, I invite you to visit the articles section of my site where I have brought together free instructional material to help you get started on your pastel experience. Knowledge is power and I want to make you more powerful so you can sail by some of the problem areas for beginning pastel artists and get into some smoother waters.

I would love to meet you personally at one of my pastel workshops. Workshops are a good way to shorten the learning curve and to get right into the action. My workshops are small, friendly and casual. My goal is to try and figure out what I can do to help each student advance in their skill level and understanding. Key ideas can really speed you on your journey in pastel. Exposure to the idea of seeing color as value was the key to rapid advancement in my skill with pastel so it is a concept I return to again and again. Students work hard in the workshops but we always have fun in the learning process! I invite you to experience this firsthand!

BEHIND THE SCENES

Filmed a few years ago, these videos show you the beautiful country landscape that I call home. You'll also find that I have a fun hobby that I indulge in on the side. I invite you to take a look behind the scenes and learn a little more about my paintings, color choices I make, and last but not least - my passion for butterflies!