Vera Kavura is a Ukrainian artist currently based in Italy. She is known for her expressive pastel paintings of flowers created exclusively from life, using natural light and carefully arranged live bouquets. Her work has been exhibited internationally in pastel exhibitions and salons across Europe and has received recognition in international pastel competitions. Vera’s paintings combine vibrant colour, movement, and atmosphere, balancing strong composition with a sense of

Our guest judge Mark Ivan Cole has chosen his winner; it is MaoMei with her 'Whisper of Wind 2'. Congratulations! MaoMei receives a certificate and an Artisan Pastellier pastel box! In second place is Olga Turkina with "Ramskardet", in third place is Beatrice Mitry with "Fire on Ice". Honorable mentions go to Teitana Mershavka with "Autumn on Lake Lac Carouge", Alena Rachinger with "Vik" and Kerstin Birk PGE with "Summer Meadow Montafon". You can see all 27 entries in the Co

May seems to be a fitting month for hosting a flower competition. Wildflowers are growing everywhere in a profusion of colours and shapes. We can't wait to see your paintings! Every member may enter two works, deadline is May 25 at midnight CET. Do not forget to add your reference. Addendum: It seems that painting flowers in nature is too narrow a challenge for some, so we will also allow wildflowers in a vase, but only wildflowers! @dorotheaschulz

Mark Ivan Cole grew up in the Ecuadorian Andes and has lived in three of the four quadrants of the planet, including Taiwan and the U.S. He and his wife, Ping, have hiked on trails around the world, from South Africa to Spain and from Bali to Xinjiang, China, not to mention miles and miles logged on foot in North America. Mark started drawing as soon as he could hold a crayon, and has worked in graphite, pen & ink and colored pencil for most of his adult life, but he didn't d

Our April GET DUSTY is a landscape challenge. We want to see your best mountain scenes. Every member may enter two paintings, deadline is April 25 at midnight CET. Do not forget to rename your files according to the GET DUSTY rules and include your reference in the description. Post your entries in this month's forum thread.

Our guest judge Pamela Hamilton has chosen her winner; it is Anja Poker with her ' Running Hare '. Congratulations! Anja receives a certificate and a mystery pastel box! In second place is Line Sorensen with " Wild Hairday", in third place is Karin Kiessling with "Minnie". Honorable mentions go to Alena Rachinger with "Gentle Gaze", Sabina Haas with " Big Red" and Sophie Parkhill with "The Guardian". You can see all 59 entries in the Competition Gallery. Read Pamela Ha

Our guest judge Barbara Jaenicke has chosen her winner; it is Alena Rachinger with her ' Winter Forest '. Congratulations! Alena receives a certificate and a mystery pastel box! In second place is Silja Salmistu with " Elegy", in third place is Kerstin Birk PGE with "Birch Trees in Snow". Honorable mentions go to Mao Mei with "Light of Fall", Katha Bineider with " Clemence" and Sophie Parkhill with "Afternoon Snooze". You can see all 83 entries in the Competition Galler

Congratulations, we have a winner! It is Elisabeth Schaller with "Light from the depth"! This is a stunning pastel and the 1st place is well dserved. Our winner will get a certificate!

Another year is coming to an end. The last GET DUSTY of the season is free choice. Show us your favourite work! As usual, every member may upload up to three entries. Deadline is January 25, 2026. Please read the GET DUSTY upload rules if you are unsure how to proceed and do not forget to rename your files GET DUSTY Upload | The PastelGuild of E We are looking forward to seeing your work! @doloressaul

Golden sunlight filtering through colourful leaves, nuts, acorns, chestnuts strewn on a table, ramblers dressed in scarves and bonnets for the first time since winter - autumn is a season rich in motifs for an artist. Show us your most autumnal paintings! Every member may post up to two entries. Deadline is November 25, 2025 at midnight CET. @Alena Rachinger @Deborah Damgaard-Hansen @Lynn Howarth @ Esther Kruis

Our guest judge Silja Salmistu has chosen her winner; it is Svetlana Kushkova with her ' Grandfather´s Library '. Congratulations! Svetlana receives a certificate and a Monetary Price! In second place is Hanna Mihas with "In an old Barn", in third place is Claire Yates with "Rust Dust ande Loved". Honorable mentions go to Janet Johnson with "Heavy Metal", Ron Norp with " Rusty Contacts" and Viviane Trubey with "The Cabinet". You can see all 28 entries in the Competition

SILJA SALMISTU PSA, IAPS-MC Silja is known for her still life paintings Her art embraces almost the whole range of still life subjects, from carefree happy florals to thought-provocing social critique. ` You can tell any story using the symbolic meaning of things, and the same painting can convey as many different messages as there are interprating eyes on it ` -she says. Her paintings combine both control and chaos - a keen direct observation of the subject with playful

No shiny new objects for our latest GET DUSTY stilllife challenge! Instead, show old things some love. Well-used tools, your granny's old...

Our guest judge Karen Israel PSA-MP, IAPS,/MC, PSWC has chosen her winner; it is Silja Salmistu with her ' Matte og Glossy 2 '....

Karen Israel is an artist working in pastel. Whether she is exploring landscape, figure or still life, her passion for design and...

Our guest judge Judy Leeds has chosen her winner; it is Elisabeth Schaller with her ' Light from the Depth '. Congratulations! Elisabeth...

@dorotheaschulz For September we offer another challenging GET DUSTY theme; movement ! How can we convey the sense of movement in a...

JUDITH KAZDYM LEEDS is a internationally recognized award winning artist whose paintings reflects her unique and colorful view of our...

Our guest judge Henriette van Staden has chosen her winner; it is Silja Salmistu with her ' Choices '. Congratulations! Silja receives...

We are back with a straightforward theme which shouldn't need a lot of explanation. Show us one or several birds; just make sure that...