Charcoal drawing basics…The Charcoal Effect

Charcoal is one tool that has been used since the times of cavemen. Charcoal is still used today in a variety of ways. It’s a medium that has its own advantages and disadvantages. It’s useful to know some charcoal drawing basics beforehand.

While trying still life with this medium, the best thing I observed was that with a single charcoal pencil, I can cover almost all tones possible. With correct pressure, a charcoal pencil can give the lightest tone as well as the darkest tone. Unlike normal graphite pencils, we don’t need to change the pencils from 2B, 6B to 8B. One charcoal pencil does it all.

Having worked with pencils and charcoal, some differences helped me understand charcoal drawing basics better. A major difference that I encountered with charcoal was that the amount of pressure that is required to give a tone with pencils is not the same as required in charcoal. In fact, just a slight pressure with charcoal gives the same tone as that of the graphite.

Charcoal drawing basics…where it works best?

• Charcoal has a very rough texture. This can be felt the moment it is used on paper. It has a feel of coarseness. Due to this property, it is good for sketching rough materials like wood, denims, non reflective surfaces, etc.
• Charcoal can be used to make preliminary drawings before coloring.
• This medium can be used to make drawings entirely made of charcoal.
• It can be used in combination with other mediums to create a dramatic effect.
• A combination of charcoal with acrylic colors can work wonders. If this combination is used properly, it can be used to create some exquisite paintings. This is a combination yet to be tried by me and I can’t wait to try it someday!

Some precautions in making a charcoal drawing:

While discussing charcoal drawing basics, it’s important to remember some precautions.  These precautions should be taken while handling charcoal. First of all, because of its rich texture, it can be very messy to handle.

One can use a butter paper to cover the portion finished and at the same time continuing working on the remaining portion. This butter paper trick is especially useful if one has the habit of resting hands on the same paper he/she is working on.

Another important thing to note is the kind of paper one is using with this medium. Charcoal requires a special texture in the paper. There are many varieties available in the market for the same. Nowadays, there are multi medium papers also available to our advantage.

Lastly, don’t forget to spray a fixative on your charcoal drawing once you finish it!

Your turn:

Now that you know charcoal drawing basics, go ahead and try making some charcoal drawings. You will be amazed at what a single charcoal pencil is capable of!