Over the last few years pastel, as a medium, has gained a great deal in popularity in this country thanks in no small part to the influence and inspiration of the beautiful work of Margaret Glass, one of the leading pastellists of today.
Regrettably the limited and indifferent work of many so-called artists in pastel coupled with totally unfounded fears for its permanence has, in the past. made pastel something of a Cinderella medium in Britain although it is much more widely accepted on the Continent. Margaret uses her pastel as a 'painting' medium, quite differently to the rather sketchy manner in which it is customarily used, thereby creating 'real' paintings in which the whole of the ground is covered as in an oil painting and with the beautiful colours, subtle, luminous or mellow, of the pastels when utilised to the very full.
Pastel is the most difficult of all artists' media but, in such skilful hands as Margaret's the incredible depth of colour and tone combined with her sense of atmosphere and her feeling for light produce paintings that are evocative, totally personal and unique.
Not since Maurice Quentin de la Tour, the accepted doyen of pastel painting, has pastel been handled in quite the manner of Margaret Glass and on would have to go a long way to find an artist with such exceptional talent, ability and sensitivity, Margaret's impressive record tells its own story.
As a regular contributor to the Paris Salon she was elected an Associate Member of the Société des Artistes Francais. She has had work accepted by the Royal Academy, the Royal Society of Marine Artists and the Pastel Society of London of which she is a member. She has had the honour of being elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.
JOSEPHINE WALPOLE