​Brian Freeman gave a wonderful demonstration on how to paint devine bovines. He began by giving us his back story on how he became an artist then talked about what to consider when painting animals. First of all, know the framework. If you’re entering an animal portrait into a show be sure that you have the anatomy correct! He suggests to do a mockup with overlays of tracing paper but he likes to sketch rather than trace. He begins with a mid-tone on a painted background using alcohol. Then he goes to lights then darks. The final stages are the highlights and the creation of edges and negative shapes. He prefers using UART 400 paper which is very similar to Wallis which is not made anymore. He showed many examples of his cow paintings, but we all loved his painting of a baby cow that he demonstrated in his presentation.

​Barbara Archer-Baldwin, PSA, APAA, PSWC, MC-IAPS
Originally from Swarthmore, PA; Barbara is now a full-time resident of Tucson, AZ. 
Education: Rhode Island School of Design, Philadelphia University of the Arts, and Temple University's Tyler School of Fine Arts.
With many top awards in national shows, she is a juried member of Salmagundi Club New York, and Signature Member of the Pastel Society of America (PSA), Signature in the Pastel Society of the West Coast, Signature in Arizona Pastel Artists Assoc. She is also Founder and past President of the Left Coast Pastel Painters Society, Venice, Florida, which, with her husband, she formed in 2018. .She is also Master Medallion holder in the International Assoc. of Pastel Societies.

She has published a pastel lessons instruction book, and teaches Pastel Painting Workshops. www.barbaraarcherbaldwin.com

Popular nature photographer John E. Baldwin was raised in Ohio and has a degree in Engineering from Ohio University. During his professional years working for du Pont in the photographic industry, he became fascinated with nature photography and its many opportunities for capturing interesting and different scenes.
Since his retirement and marriage to artist Barbara Archer-Baldwin, john has studied pastel painting and has developed an interest in landscapes and particularly in scenes where perspective, mood and lighting highlight the story.  He uses his vast collection of photos as references for new and unusual art.

His work has recently been juried into on-line shows in Iowa, Southern California and Red Rocks-Nevada Pastel societies.

He tutors students in digital photography and photoshop editing and also provides artists with high quality digital images for creating reproductions or entering national on-line art shows.
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He routinely posts images and activity on his Facebook page “The Brushedlens” .
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​Becky Neideffer is an artist with a life-long passions for art, she has worked in all mediums, but prefers soft pastels and colored pencils.  Her art is realistic with an emphasis on light in both mediums.  Her paintings are predominately landscapes but include still life, animals, figurative and floral subjects. She is a self-taught artist and has studied basic design, anatomy, landscape, charcoal, watercolor, pen and ink, conte, pastel and oil with professional artists.  She is President of the Tucson Pastel Society, which she founded in 2010, and is a member of the Pastel Society of America, the International Association of Pastel Societies, the Colored Pencil Society of America and the Tucson Colored Pencil Artists’ Association.

Originally from Swarthmore, PA, Barbara and her husband John Baldwin relocated to Tucson in February, 2024 after living in Florida for over 25 years. She is an academically schooled professional artist with training at Rhode Island School of Design, Philadelphia University of the Arts, and Temple University's Tyler School of Fine Arts. She has been represented by the Four Corners Gallery since May 2024. She is a Signature Member of Pastel Society of America, as well as the Pastel Society of the West Coast, and the Arizona Pastel Artists Association.  and a member of several other national Pastel Societies. She has been juried into the most prestigious Salmagundi Club, NYC.
Her teaching experience is long and widely varied, though, since moving, she limits her teaching to one-day workshops. Her prolific work includes illustrations for published books and periodicals, works in oil, acrylic, pen and ink, pastel, and miniature art, and hangs in collections all over the world.  She has been consistently juried into National and International Pastel Shows, winning awards in many of them.
She and husband John founded the Left Coast Pastel Painters Society, in Florida, with affiliation in the International Assoc. of Pastel Societies. Still members there, they are now very active with the local Tucson Pastel Society.
[email protected], www.barbaraarcherbaldwin.com
 

​When walking around the Washington State Capitol Grounds in 2001, I saw and watched some people painting.  They invited me to join them the next week.  So I bought some watercolor supplies and began painting with the Olympia Art League.   After taking a pastel class in 2006, I was completely hooked.  I love working with my fingers and with the numerous, vibrant and subdued colors.  My winters are spent in sunny Tucson in the richly diverse Sonoran Desert, and my summers are spent in Olympia near the sparkling shores of Puget Sound.  I am grateful to be able to paint in two beautiful places.  I also paint from photos taken on my travels.  Nature is delightful, and, hopefully, my art reflects some of her beauty. 

I began my art study at age 4, drawing with paper and pencil as respite from my family of 7. I continued with art in Junior High School. I went to Pasadena City College and got my AA degree but went no further. I was married and the following year my son was born. After 6 years I became a single mother with a full time job.

There was little time for painting, however I did paintings in oil from time to time. I took adult Education Art classes and classes from Art Center School of Design. I I am a realistic painter but have dabbled in abstract as well. I find more satisfaction in realism.
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After retirement We moved to Baker City, Oregon. My bucket list was to restore an old home. We could not afford the California prices and Oregon was perfect. We restored 3 homes in the 12 years we were there. I was on the Gallery Committee at the Art Center in town as well as the President of the County Historical Society. I showed art at Crossroads Art Gallery and Short Term Gallery in Baker as well as Blue Turtle Gallery and Arts East in La Grande, winning several awards. We bought a winter home in Green Valley and 3 years later moved there for better medical options. After being in Green Valley a few weeks I joined the Santa Rita Art League and headed up the Figure Drawing sessions and the Plein Air group. I taught pastel at the Quail Creek Art Center for 6 years and retired last year. I also joined Tucson Pastel Society. I have shown paintings at venues in Green Valley Recreation Centers, Community for the Performing Arts gallery and at the Desert Museum Art Gallery and St Phillips Church Gallery in Tucson. I have won awards and ribbons from many of the venues. Pastelis my favorite medium. I further my art education by taking workshops from renown pastel painters at Tubac Center for Fine Art, Center for Performing Art Gallery, Santa Rita Art League and Tucson Pastel Society.