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Making Music with Oil Pastels (Online Workshop) Fall 2026 w/ Regina Ottman
October 1 to October 15 (Thursdays), 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM Eastern Time
**All sessions are live and will be recorded, students do not have to be present. All recordings will be available to students for 3 months after the final session, after 3 months the recording will be deleted.
Please check your email spam/junk folder for your Zoom invite. Our business hours are 10:00 AM through 5:00 PM. All course information and email correspondence will be sent during business hours. If students purchase a course, workshop, demo or recording outside business hours or during the weekend the course information or recording will be sent the following business day.
DEMO: https://youtu.be/zJFOA7wneBg
Workshop Description
You are invited to bring your curiosity and sense of play to an exploration of music, art and oil pastel!
Music and art have always been sisters, inspiring and challenging each other. Using oil pastels, we will delve into how the elements of music combine with our own experiences to foster unique ideas, inspiration and voice in our individual artistic practices.
Oil pastel is a beautiful, vibrant, versatile medium that can be used in both linear and planar ways, resulting in a plethora of mark-making possibilities. During the workshop, we will explore painting and drawing with oil pastel, ways to incorporate other media into our work, and how music can take our practice in new directions.
All levels are welcome!
Workshop Outline
Week 1:
Introduction (me and my work).
Segue: Brief intro of workshop structure overall & for today.
Slide presentation/discussion of oil pastels, their history, and artists who use/used them.
Demo - playing with oil pastels - comparing brands/qualities and surfaces - playing with some techniques (using Turpenoid, using frottage, scraping, varied markmaking - planar vs. linear)
Q&A
Homework for next week: using oil pastels, create one or two pieces exploring different ways to make marks/different techniques.
Week 2:
Recap/review of homework/questions, comments & feedback.
Lesson: Slide presentation/discussion of artists who used music for their work and composers who were inspired by/used art in their music.
Demo - my "color keyboard" & using oil pastel with music.
Q&A
Intro to exercise: What to listen for in music.
Exercise: Two short sessions of "directed" listening/ responsive drawing using oil pastels & two different genres of music.
Show your work/feedback/discussion.
Homework for next week:
Using oil pastels: Create one piece using music I will post, employing the listen and respond technique - create a second piece using music you select, also using the listen and respond technique.
Week 3:
Review homework/questions, comments & feedback.
Lesson: Slide presentation/discussion of artists & composers working in ways that cross between art & music.
Demo: Adding acrylic ink to the practice (and other media) - how I work.
Q&A
Exercise: Try using initial marks with the acrylic ink after first hearing, then work with oil pastels after second hearing. Two short sessions with different genres of music.
Q&A: Do we prefer one genre or another? Continuous listening or sporadic? What was unexpected in this process? What did you discover? What music really inspires you?
Wrap-up: Bringing this into your own practice, using your favorite media (pros and cons of media immediacy).
Workshop Materials
Oil pastels: A small set will get you started for this workshop. Try colors from a few different brands to see what you like best. I recommend buying one stick in the same color of several different brands, so you can compare the feel and pigment load of each. None will go to waste!
Turpenoid: A small container
Brushes: Two or three oil paint brushes, whatever shape/size you prefer. I like to use a small flat, a large flat, and a medium sized round
Paper towels
Acrylic ink: Pick a color (or two) that you love. Waterproof, please Paper that will stand up to work/re-working, to the oil in the pastels, and to the use of Turpenoid. I like Arches oil paper, Jerry's oil pastel paper pads, Arches hot pressed watercolor paper, and Hannemühle toned watercolor paper. Some mixed media paper works nicely, too. No smaller than 8"x8"/ no bigger than 18"x24" please.
Optional other items:
Your favorite mark-making media: colored markers, colored pens/pencils, Caran d'Ache Neocolor 2 water soluble crayons, litho/grease crayons, collage materials & glue sticks, etc
Palette knife, wedges or scraping tools, an old credit card, an old comb, etc
Baby oil or wipes for cleaning hands (some people prefer to wear gloves while working)
Stumps or tortillons
Various items for frottage: corrugated cardboard, netting or tulle, sandpaper, etc
October 1 to October 15 (Thursdays), 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM Eastern Time
**All sessions are live and will be recorded, students do not have to be present. All recordings will be available to students for 3 months after the final session, after 3 months the recording will be deleted.
Please check your email spam/junk folder for your Zoom invite. Our business hours are 10:00 AM through 5:00 PM. All course information and email correspondence will be sent during business hours. If students purchase a course, workshop, demo or recording outside business hours or during the weekend the course information or recording will be sent the following business day.
DEMO: https://youtu.be/zJFOA7wneBg
Workshop Description
You are invited to bring your curiosity and sense of play to an exploration of music, art and oil pastel!
Music and art have always been sisters, inspiring and challenging each other. Using oil pastels, we will delve into how the elements of music combine with our own experiences to foster unique ideas, inspiration and voice in our individual artistic practices.
Oil pastel is a beautiful, vibrant, versatile medium that can be used in both linear and planar ways, resulting in a plethora of mark-making possibilities. During the workshop, we will explore painting and drawing with oil pastel, ways to incorporate other media into our work, and how music can take our practice in new directions.
All levels are welcome!
Workshop Outline
Week 1:
Introduction (me and my work).
Segue: Brief intro of workshop structure overall & for today.
Slide presentation/discussion of oil pastels, their history, and artists who use/used them.
Demo - playing with oil pastels - comparing brands/qualities and surfaces - playing with some techniques (using Turpenoid, using frottage, scraping, varied markmaking - planar vs. linear)
Q&A
Homework for next week: using oil pastels, create one or two pieces exploring different ways to make marks/different techniques.
Week 2:
Recap/review of homework/questions, comments & feedback.
Lesson: Slide presentation/discussion of artists who used music for their work and composers who were inspired by/used art in their music.
Demo - my "color keyboard" & using oil pastel with music.
Q&A
Intro to exercise: What to listen for in music.
Exercise: Two short sessions of "directed" listening/ responsive drawing using oil pastels & two different genres of music.
Show your work/feedback/discussion.
Homework for next week:
Using oil pastels: Create one piece using music I will post, employing the listen and respond technique - create a second piece using music you select, also using the listen and respond technique.
Week 3:
Review homework/questions, comments & feedback.
Lesson: Slide presentation/discussion of artists & composers working in ways that cross between art & music.
Demo: Adding acrylic ink to the practice (and other media) - how I work.
Q&A
Exercise: Try using initial marks with the acrylic ink after first hearing, then work with oil pastels after second hearing. Two short sessions with different genres of music.
Q&A: Do we prefer one genre or another? Continuous listening or sporadic? What was unexpected in this process? What did you discover? What music really inspires you?
Wrap-up: Bringing this into your own practice, using your favorite media (pros and cons of media immediacy).
Workshop Materials
Oil pastels: A small set will get you started for this workshop. Try colors from a few different brands to see what you like best. I recommend buying one stick in the same color of several different brands, so you can compare the feel and pigment load of each. None will go to waste!
Turpenoid: A small container
Brushes: Two or three oil paint brushes, whatever shape/size you prefer. I like to use a small flat, a large flat, and a medium sized round
Paper towels
Acrylic ink: Pick a color (or two) that you love. Waterproof, please Paper that will stand up to work/re-working, to the oil in the pastels, and to the use of Turpenoid. I like Arches oil paper, Jerry's oil pastel paper pads, Arches hot pressed watercolor paper, and Hannemühle toned watercolor paper. Some mixed media paper works nicely, too. No smaller than 8"x8"/ no bigger than 18"x24" please.
Optional other items:
Your favorite mark-making media: colored markers, colored pens/pencils, Caran d'Ache Neocolor 2 water soluble crayons, litho/grease crayons, collage materials & glue sticks, etc
Palette knife, wedges or scraping tools, an old credit card, an old comb, etc
Baby oil or wipes for cleaning hands (some people prefer to wear gloves while working)
Stumps or tortillons
Various items for frottage: corrugated cardboard, netting or tulle, sandpaper, etc