Fourth Grade
Worksheets
What Are Pastels?
Pastels are colored, powdery sticks that can make many kinds of drawings. Many artists like pastels because they are a versatile medium. Pastels can be blended, but they can also create sharp lines. And pastels have the added benefit of making your fingertips rainbow colors!
Pastels are formed by combining powdered pigments with a binder like gum. Pastels are different than chalk or charcoal. Artwork created with pastels doesn't crack, fade, yellow, or darken. Pastels always look vivid and bright. Pastels can be rubbed, smeared, and blended easily to create unique pictures.
The forerunners of modern pastels go back to about 15,000 B.C. Primitive artists drew cave drawings in Spain, southern France, and South Africa. They used burnt bones mixed with earth pigments to make drawings of bison, elk, and other animals. Their drawings looked surprisingly real!
