It’s a useful skill to be able to draw on all different scales and this exercise will help you expand your drawing to fill the page – whatever the size!
You will need:
- paper - if you always use A4 then try A3
- charcoal sticks - they come in different sizes - you can't do small detailed pictures with a piece of charred wood!
- something to draw; preferably (but not essential) something bigger than the paper you are going to drawn on.
Before you start, spend a few minutes looking at the item you have chosen to draw – look at its overall shape, its relationship to other items on the table and/or the back ground etc
Remember it doesn’t have to be a meticulous ‘copy’, it’s best to use free flowing lines that are loosely and lightly drawn. Don't forget, the charcoal stick will give different depths of colour depending on the pressure used, and of course your finger tips make excellent blending tools!
Often students are not keen on using charcoal because they see it as 'messy', but once they've tried it and see the expressive marks made possible using this medium they become hooked. Once finished the drawing can be fixed using a quick spritz of hairspray.
Often students are not keen on using charcoal because they see it as 'messy', but once they've tried it and see the expressive marks made possible using this medium they become hooked. Once finished the drawing can be fixed using a quick spritz of hairspray.
Think about the general shape, size, angles etc rather than detail, once you have a basic image you can start to refine your drawing.
Work quickly: why not try standing up to draw or holding the charcoal stick very loosely? Does this effect how you draw or the type of marks you make?
I really liked the Turks turban squash I sketched, but at A3 it was too large to incorporate into my sketchbook, so I photographed it and printed it out at A4. Not only did it then fit into my book, but there was no charcoal to smudge!
Don't limit yourself to just using copy paper, try printing onto a piece of 'sacrificial'* piece of paper or use a blank page from your sketchbook and after printing you can add colour as well as additional marks.
*this is a piece of paper used to capture all the drips and dribbles when you are painting pages etc. Often, they become mini works of art in their own right- try it!
*this is a piece of paper used to capture all the drips and dribbles when you are painting pages etc. Often, they become mini works of art in their own right- try it!
Unfortunately when I tried printing onto a previously painted page I suspect the gesso layer caused the printer ink to spread, I also miss aligned the paper and so only had half a print. However, I'm going with a design opportunity rather than a mistake idea - the blank space gives me a place to write!
You can see lots of examples of charcoal sketches from our present Inspiration to Stitch students over on our Instagram Account: InStitches 2013 or follow the link: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bp7WrEBHjBE/ and don't forget, while you are there be sure to 'follow' us to see regular updates!
Hazel & Terry
You can see lots of examples of charcoal sketches from our present Inspiration to Stitch students over on our Instagram Account: InStitches 2013 or follow the link: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bp7WrEBHjBE/ and don't forget, while you are there be sure to 'follow' us to see regular updates!
Hazel & Terry
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