Archives: Charcoal

Project 3: Recycled Being & Quiet Additive Drawing

  • Thumbnail
  • Thumbnail
  • Recycled Being

Project 3: Recycled Being & Quiet Additive Drawing

Date Completed: Spring 2022

Materials: Charcoal Pencils, Large Drawing Paper, Smudging Tool

Description: The recycled being project required us to use additive drawing to slowly build value. We also had to make a creature out of recycled materials with an interesting and dynamic design. I used shapes, an egg cartoon, soda cans, feathers, and bubble wrap. The processes involved me holding my charcoal pencil at an angle while lightly applying pressure in a back and forth motion.

The quiet project made us choose an object that gave a feeling of soft and quiet. I made multiple thumbnail sketches of the quiet project in order to choose the right object. There also had to be some texture in the background that supported the drawing. We also had to consider how light was affecting the objects. I chose a butterfly because of the soft and delicate nature of their wings. First I made a light square to mark the boundaries.The process involved me holding my charcoal pencil at an angle while lightly applying pressure in a back and forth motion. This process helped me learn how to be more intentional with my strokes since we could not erase at all. I struggled a lot with this process because of the lack of erasing but I persevered. It was hard to do no lines when butterflies have lines on their wings.

Project 1: Negative Space Under the Kitchen Sink

  • Thumbnail

Project 1: Negative Space Under the Kitchen Sink

Date Completed: Spring 2022

Materials: Charcoal Pencils, Large Drawing Paper

Description: The project was to make a drawing of the cluttered mess under our kitchen sink. It utilized the knowledge of positive and negative space and I also learned how to proportion my drawings. I did my thumbnail sketch first and decided what things need to be moved over or positioned differently. I decided to shift my drawing over to the right because things were off center. When I felt prepared I started on my final drawing. I first drew a box to contain my drawing so that all my shapes would be closed. I then drew space around the objects and then chiseled out each shape afterward. I made sure all my shapes were closed. I had to redraw my pipes because the lines were done in a criss-cross pattern and not done with chiseled out shapes. Throughout this process I tried to space out and be as calm as possible. Overall, I think I did a good job capturing what I saw under the kitchen sink. I wish I could have used cleaner lines and did not smudge my charcoal pencil on the paper so often. This experience has taught me to draw still lifes which i never even knew I could do in the first place. It placed me outside of my comfort zone and made me respect people who can do brilliant still lifes. It also taught me about positive and negative shapes which I had no knowledge of prior to attending this class.

Project 2: Favorite Things Reductive Value Drawing

Project 2: Reductive Value Charcoal Drawing

Date Completed: Spring 2022

Materials: Vine Charcoal, Large Drawing Paper, Smudging Tool, Sponge

Description: This project used the reductive drawing method to draw 5 objects that all have a similar theme. Only one light source was allowed to be used. We also had to capture the shadows and lights. We used minimal lines and only allowed to values to be next to each other. We also had to take into account any reflected light. There also had to be some texture in the background that support the drawing. I choose objects that have a magic theme: a magic lamp, a crystal, a rose in a glass dome, a cup of the female form, and a book where I write poetry about fantasy elements. First, I laid down a thick layer of vine charcoal and erased out the negative shapes. Then I went in and tried to capture the finer details by adding more charcoal. I also used the kneaded eraser, charcoal pencils, and the blending tool. I moved the objects on accident a couple times by bumping my desk or the light source and tried my best to cover any of my mistakes. This process taught me how to draw shadows since I have never drawn them before. It also made me more aware of how light affects the objects that I draw. I have never used vine charcoal before so using it for this project was a unique experience for me. I have also never drawn fabric before, so I was happy to see that my fabric looked like fabric.