Annual exhibit boasts layers of pastels with 'Enchanted Colors'

Jun. 4—The New Mexico Pastel Society's annual exhibition germinated in 1991 at Albuquerque's American Furniture Warehouse with 12 artists.

This year's show — the 31st — encompasses 73 works at the Millicent Rogers Museum, augmented by an additional 40 online.

Still lifes, portraits and landscapes dominate "Enchanted Colors." The exhibition runs through June 18.

This year's event drew 219 entrees by more than 90 artists from across the U.S. Jurors pared down the finalists.

"The medium hadn't exploded at that time (we started)," said exhibition chair Nicholas Tesluk. "We were early in the game. From there, it just grew and grew.

"We are one of the premiere pastel societies in the country," he continued. "The landscapes here are very conducive to artists. We see a lot of chamisa because it grows here in New Mexico. We have probably less abstraction. It's not only realism, sometimes it's an Impressionist view."

Albuquerque artist Sarah Blumenschein has juried into the show since the early 2000s. A retired Intel engineer, she didn't get serious about her art until she stopped working.

She chose pastels as her medium "because of the color vibrancy and the immediacy of the color," she said. "You don't have to wait for it to dry. And you can layer; you can glaze colors over each other."

Blumenschein grew up "all over," thanks to her engineer father.

"I was always artistic, but when I went to college I realized I wanted to get a job where I could definitely make some money," she said.

After retirement, she took a few workshops. She never studied art formally.

"Still life really is a good subject to hang on if you want to really learn how to paint," said the artist of the luminous "Lemons with Glass Bottles." "You can paint from real life and the light won't move."

She sketches out the images first, sometimes experimenting with darker paper or a new brand of pastels.

Notoriously difficult to paint due to its transparency, glass is one of Blumenschein's favorite subjects. She prefers colored glass: blue, turquoise or pale green.

"I've done multiple paintings with a similar set-up," she said. "The blues and greens and violets and you have the contrasting yellow with the lemons.

"It gives you a chance to observe," she continued. "You have to forget you're seeing glass and paint the shapes you see. Where's the light? Where's the dark? Where are the reflections? If you look at the shapes, it's not so daunting."

She often gleans her still life arrangements from walking through the grocery store, often within the floral department or the seasonal displays.

"The Pumpkins at the Bottom" came from a visit to Trader Joe's.

The pears in "Sunflowers, Daisies, and Red Pears" came from a similar shopping trip.

"Sometimes I can't paint fast enough to keep up with my ideas," she added.

Blumenschein also shows her work at Weems Gallery.

'Enchanted Colors'

Presented by Pastel Society of New Mexico

WHEN: Through June 18

WHERE: Millicent Rogers Museum, 1504 Millicent Rogers Road, El Prado

HOW MUCH: $15; $18 docent tours; free for children 12 and under and veterans, millicentrogers.org, 575-758-2462