Draw with Charcoal
Tuesday January 13, 2009
Charcoal is one of my favorite mediums. I love the rich matte darks that you can achieve with charcoal. I find it lends itself to moody, expressive work that I can't really match with pencil. I know a lot of artists extract an amazing range of tone and expression from graphite, but nothing beats charcoal as far as I'm concerned. Mess is always a bit of a problem with charcoal - it's a dry, crumbly medium that tends to create a bit of dust. You have to be prepared to clean up as you go, and vacuum often. A damp cloth is handy for cleaning fingers (keep one in a ziploc bag when traveling). I'm about to dedicate a wall of my office to a large-scale charcoal drawing. Fortunately for me, it's my own house, so I can tape the drawing straight to the wall, and I'll put a dropsheet beneath to catch the worst of the particles, so they aren't trodden into the carpet.
Charcoal Drawing Articles:
Charcoal Drawing FAQ
Charcoal Exercise - Soft Volume
How to Apply Spray Fixative
Charcoal for Drawing - Top Picks
Comments
Hi,
Really enjoyed reading your article about charcoal. It is messy and beautiful all in one. Would love to see your largescale drawing for your office. Have used charcoal for over twenty years, usually for preparatory sketches or to underlay for pastels. Many works of drawing stand alone as fine art, but are often overlooked or underrepresented in exhibits.
I totally agree with you Helen, I love charcoal too, it’s great for doing nightscapes (whatever mood you’re in!).