Pastels - out of business?

[Mary Sparrow]

Mike,

Ok, I undertsand, and sorry for asking a question you already answered. I understand feeling like you are better in one than in the other. I feel like my pastels are better than my oils and why people still hire me and pay more for something I think isn't is good is beyond me.
Maybe it isn't as obvious to untrained eyes as it is to just the average person, but it is blatant to me and I want to be proficient at both..there again, it takes practice, and practice takes time and time is something I have very little of these days. SO, I getchya.

Oh, and thanks for posting those, my memory has now been jogged. And really, do any of the portraits we see on this forum look the same as in person? I know none of mine do.

Julie, like you, I feel like why turn down ANY opportunities for commissions at this point in my life? But still, it bothers me that my time isn't compensated the same.

[Brenda Ellis]

Hi.
I'm new to the forum, but just wanted to say thank you to Mike for starting this thread. This is something I've been wondering about for myself, lately.
I had decided to pursue pastels because I thought that they would be easier with my strength being in drawing and not color. However, the advice I received recently was if I wanted to make any money as a portraitist I should pursue oils. Being a rebel, I disregarded this advice. And the very next week, was asked to do an oil portrait. I'm finding oils to be easier for me. Probably because they are more forgiving and you can mix on the palette instead of clogging the paper trying to get the right color.
However, I'm not one to give up and I want to be proficient at both pastels and oils.
My question is (and this is probably a broader question), do we artists have the responsibility to advocate for pastels as a medium equal to oils in value or should we leave influencing the market to the patrons?
I don't have an answer or an opinion on this question, I'm just wondering what more experienced professional artists think.
Thank you, and I promise not to post any more until I've finished reading the rest of the forum.

[Mike McCarty]

My question is (and this is probably a broader question), do we artists have the responsibility to advocate for pastels as a medium equal to oils in value or should we leave influencing the market to the patrons?

I take the key word in your question to be "responsibility." Personally, I don't feel any particular responsibility to do this. I do feel a responsibility to be in a position to educate on the subject, but not necessarily to advocate for any particular medium. I want to be an effective advocate for my own strengths. The medium will have to make it's own way on this earth as best it can, just like me.