Another figure study. Been putting off including faces with the white-on-black and this time the contrast is not so high as the previous rim-lighting, and so lacks the impact of the other figures, but some good practice on working with tone using the white charcoal.
Posts Tagged ‘Figure study’
Glow
Monday, October 27th, 2014Mist
Friday, October 3rd, 2014A 2nd white-on-black attempt (white charcoal on black pastel paper)
I still like the ethereal sparkle of using white, and I’m still amazed by how quickly it comes to life (perhaps because it’s still new to me, so I’m not looking so critically at every imperfection). Looking forward to doing more like this.
Posture revisited
Saturday, September 20th, 2014A revisiting of the same image I drew back in 2010, only this time starting with black paper using white charcoal.
First time with only using white charcoal — have occasionally used it for highlights, but only rarely and never as the main medium. Was very surprised how quickly the drawing took shape and the ethereal nature of the result. This was “finished” in less than a quarter of the time of the original!
White charcoal on black pastel paper.
Alex
Saturday, September 6th, 2014First big drawing in a very long time. Choarcoal on A2 Bristol Board. Still needs some finishing, but is very large and cumbersome to work on! Took photos along the way for a Work In Progress animation, perhaps I will add it once it’s finished!
Balance
Tuesday, March 22nd, 2011This one had an unfortunate spillage half way through — see if you can spot the water marks. From a distance still looks ok to me though.
Charcoal on A3 Bristol Board.
Writhe
Saturday, October 2nd, 2010Charcoal drawing on Bristol board (39 x 27 cm)
Last in my series of nudes. Thought it would be fun to explore a scene with a wide tonal range but with many darks, try to explore the much darker aspect of charcoal (over my previous choice of graphite)
I think I’m sold on charcoal, the wider tonal range, the beautifully dark blacks and the lack of shine all fit into what I like and enjoy in drawing.
Posture
Friday, September 10th, 2010Charcoal drawing on bristol board (24 x 39 cm)
Drawn from reference photo ~12 hrs to complete.
For me, the lower half of this drawing is what makes it — and not just for the obvious …. well, ok, a bit for the obvious! The reflected light from the floor, the little toes and the beautiful teardrop curves all add up to a wonderful scene. The harsh top light which makes the bottom half work, also makes the top half tricky to make work.
Deterimination
Monday, July 12th, 2010Charcoal drawing on Bristol Board (33 x 20 cm)
Drawn from reference photo, ~ 15hrs to complete.
I decided to experiment with mixed media: there is a small amount of ink used in some of the darker shadows. When I was working with graphite, I always found the darks to be too light and so occasionally used ink to bring the blacks to a good black (but found the black ink to graphite transition quite difficult) so I thought it might be easier with charcoal given its darker blacks.
Turns out that the ink doesn’t really add to the tone, charcoal can already get very dark blacks. On the down side, the ink adds a little shine to the areas where it has been used (which wasn’t a problem with graphite, since it shines anyway, but is a major distraction with charcoal).
The only place it might be useful is in outlining since you can add a very thin ink line which cannot be erased or smudged.
Live and learn as they say…