Sticking Your Neck Out Pastels

Sticking Your Neck Out
Oil pastels on paper, 8x10 inch
Presented in an up-cycled mirrored frame
Sticking Your Neck Out is an expressive animal portrait that captures a moment of curiosity and quiet vulnerability. Rendered in oil pastels, the work uses loose, gestural mark-making and layered colour to suggest movement and emotion rather than literal detail. The elongated neck and softly defined features draw the viewer into an intimate encounter, inviting reflection on courage, exposure, and the act of stepping forward.
Earthy ochres and warm browns are balanced with delicate linear accents, allowing the figure to emerge gently from the pale, atmospheric background. The reflective up-cycled mirror frame adds a contemporary edge, subtly echoing the theme of self-awareness and risk.
This piece sits comfortably within contemporary expressive and intuitive art, celebrating character, feeling, and storytelling over strict realism.