Try It: Pastel Painting with Mary Beth Drabiszczak

Concept and Experience

Interested in trying your hand at pastel painting for the first time? This workshop teaches you how to make marks, layer, and blend with pastel through easy-to-understand exercises and a small finished painting of a landscape. Develop new skills and the motivation to continue exploring your artistic interests. PenArt provides all of the materials needed.

New this year! Join us for a three-hour Try It session in the morning or choose to extend your day through an afternoon Fake It Til You Make It session from 1-4pm to continue practicing your skills, build confidence, and work toward more finished pieces. The afternoon session is an additional $55 and includes all supplies and instruction. Register at the link above! *Must be registered for the morning session in order to join the afternoon.

Instructor

As a plein air pastelist, Mary Beth Drabiszczak works with saturated color and gestural mark-making to document the temporary, fleeting moments in the landscape through bold and suggestive strokes. A 2025 Door County Plein Air Festival featured artist, her work has been included in numerous festivals and won awards, including Best of Show in the 2025 Falls Festival of the Arts Plein Air (WI). In her classes, Mary Beth’s goal is to support students in their creative endeavors, encouraging individual expression through play and experimentation. When not teaching or in the studio, she can be found playing with her two cats, Grey and Goldie.