Join me on the exploration of different charcoals/graphite pencils!
Using the "ordinary" graphite pencils brought me back to my old K-12 school days. It wasn't until AP art in high school that I was taught pencil techniques, such as holding the pencil differently and cross-hatching. This was also when I was introduced to a range of values, because before I was only using the standard HB pencils. Revisiting the simple pencil as a college student helped me loosen up with my pencil. As for charcoal, revisiting it with an "exploration" approach allowed me to mess around and be expressive with my strokes since it is my all-time favorite medium!
MATERIALS
Vine & compressed charcoal + chalk
Charcoal drawing pencils
Charcoal Powder
Sofft 4 Knives with covers
Stumps & tortillons
Kneaded eraser
Tombow Mono Zero Eraser
White or pink eraser
Chamois (or paper towel to blend)
Paint brushes (or old makeup brushes!)
Drawing pad, mixed media pad, newsprint, or white paper
Q-Tips + ruler
Wide range of graphite pencils (I recommend 2H-9B)
Charcoal Exploration
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Charcoal Techniques
There are so many techniques you can use when it comes to charcoal! I explored hatching, "under"-etching, blending, eraser-lifting, different types of dry mark-making and wet mark-making, painting with the brush dipped in the charcoal then in water and vice versa, dry brush, wet on wet, etc. Please read my notes in the images to see what techniques match with which marks, and what type of charcoal was used. Compressed charcoal and pencils were best for dark spots and thin/thick line-work, vine was best for soft layers and for when needing to erase, and the powder was perfect for mixing with water and painting. Paper stumps and knives are also great tools for smoothing the charcoal and blending.
The last set of pictures show drawings I made and the process when I was exploring mark-making with charcoal and water. I loved hatching and making lines with the mono eraser to lift the charcoal off and leave thin marks.
Graphite Exploration
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Graphite Techniques
The great thing about graphite pencils is that they're extremely versatile, and you have greater control over them compared to charcoal in my opinion. Less mess whoo-hoo! While drawing, I used cross-hatching, scumbling, blending with my fingers, stippling, etc. I also varied the thickness of my lines, my pencil pressure, my pencil value choices, and types of shapes. You can apply the same techniques used for charcoal for graphite except for using water unless it's specifically graphite powder (which I didn't have, unfortunately).
Personal Thoughts
I found mark-making with graphite/charcoal to be quite expressive despite its lack of color. The relationships between the marks set on the page are exceptionally important and versatile. Though graphite is not as dark as charcoal, it’s great for exploring finer detail and adding texture to drawings. Some effects you can achieve with this medium are shades using 2H-9B ranges that can be layered with cross-hatching or scumbling to give certain qualities in drawings. Perhaps lighter, more delicate marks are all about intricacy whereas dark and loose marks may mean roughness or stress. Moreover, you can tilt the tip of the pencil to give more grainy textures and fill larger areas rather than sticking to the simple tip. Toothier surfaces also allow for an additional component of texture that shows through when you tilt the pencil.
With charcoal, all of the aforementioned effects can also be achieved, except it’s darker, opaque, and richer than graphite. You can blend graphite with many tools like paper towels, Q-tips, and tortillions to achieve a variety of effects. Gloomy and mysterious qualities can be added to your drawings, and the soft/hardness of the eraser can also affect what you’re trying to portray. Soft pulls with the eraser can be seen as dreamy and wispy, whereas harder marks are more decisive and stronger. Varying the pressure of the charcoal can also help with greater ranges, but you can also add the help of white chalk to add a pop of light. This is why newsprint or a more neutral-tone color of paper works better with charcoal, and newsprint allows for easier erasure of charcoal to keep building onto your drawing. With toothier surfaces, the marks are more permanent, which is also something to consider when thinking about how much of your process you wish to show. This, however, can also bring more life to your drawings that AI, for example, fails to.
Additional sources for help!
Exploring my Theme - Cat Characteristics
Inspiring expressive animal charcoal artist: Tianyin Wang
Charcoal
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I chose to draw angry and daring cats for this media exploration. Because charcoal is such an expressive medium, I decided to be very loose with my drawings. I started by blocking out the shapes of the cats using charcoal powder with the Sofft 4 Knives then going in with charcoal pencils to do some cross-hatching for shadows. I blended those layers with paper stumps so the dark pigment wouldn't be wiped off easily, and then I pulled out highlights/marks with different types of erasers (mono zero for thin fur, kneaded for light erasure, pink for strong erasure). Lastly, to add more expression to the drawing, I played with the thin and thick sides of charcoal sticks to make angry marks for the provoked cat and fierce marks for the daring ones! I've learned that how you hold the charcoal sticks/pencils and how you use their various angles adds to line quality in your work.
For the Classroom...
Age appropriateness & behavioral expectations:
Graphite can be used for all age groups, but preferably those in second grade and up to make more intricate drawings. Monitor the younger ones to make sure the pencil doesn't go in their eye or mouth! Because charcoal is very messy, I'd prefer to use it with middle schoolers and high schoolers
Students should not blow any charcoal powder residue
Students should clean up their areas with a wet paper towel
Students should wash their hands or wipe them before touching other surfaces
Accommodations
Project Ideas
Safety & Health
Reference:
Hafeli, Mary Claire. Exploring Studio Materials: Teaching Creative Art Making to Children. Oxford University Press, 2015.
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