Oil Pastel Techniques in ‘Clouds in the Sky’ by Laura Bernardeschi Nelson

Clouds in the Sky

Oil pastels on paper, 45 × 35 cm
Signed, varnished, and sold framed
By Laura Bernardeschi Nelson

In Clouds in the Sky, color becomes breath — the living pulse of air and land meeting beneath an ever-changing sky. This piece was created in oil pastels, a medium I love for its immediacy and tactile richness. Layer upon layer of pigment is worked into the surface, allowing light to shimmer softly through translucent hues of turquoise, green, and amber.

The landscape unfolds like a memory: a wooden gate stands quietly at the edge of a field, its weathered lines contrasting the fluid movement of grasses and sky. In the distance, trees dissolve into misty forms, their silhouettes shifting between presence and disappearance. Two birds cross the horizon, small but free, tracing invisible paths across the blue expanse.

I wanted this work to capture the stillness that exists just before change — the delicate moment when clouds begin to move and the air feels alive with promise. Though peaceful, it holds the quiet energy of transformation, a whisper of wind beneath calm skies.

Technically, I built the surface with soft oil pastels on heavy paper, using blending and layering to create depth and atmosphere. The final piece was lightly varnished to preserve the colors’ luminosity and sealed within a simple frame, allowing the image to breathe.

Clouds in the Sky is not only a landscape, but also an invitation to pause — to look beyond the visible horizon and feel the rhythm of light, air, and time.