From charcoal to pastel

Pastel, 3 hour pose.

Last week I attended the Drawn and Quartered event at the Hedge Gallery in the W.78th Street Studios. All the life drawing groups from the Cleveland area gathered together for a night of fun doing either the short wacky drawing sessions or the long pose. I decided to do the short poses because that's where the fun was. I realized last year, that color made people notice. So my tote bag of
drawing goodies and tools did not have my usual charcoal and pencils. Instead, it was set up with pastels - cheap ones - so that's what I used this week while drawing in the bar. I enjoyed drawing the model. Lesson for the day - avoid drawing in a dark corner with color and don't expect miracles with cheap supplies.

Tina Ripley

Charcoal, 3 hour pose

Charcoal, 3 hour pose

charcoal, 3 hour pose

Gabbie

Charcoal, 3 hour pose

I'm finding I have favored drawing tools - medium Nitram charcoal, conte crayon 2B, a soft charcoal pencil, a kneaded and hard eraser, a stump, and especially - my fingers. Thanks to all those who have teased me about using cheap paper - I've been using better quality paper the last few sessions and I can tell the difference. The Nitram charcoal goes on like butter and is less likely to lift off if slightly touched. Something is to be said about using quality materials.

soft edges

Charcoal, 3 hr pose

I've been trying to soften edges of what I draw and to say more with less detail. At one point, the cheek was undefined but still understood. I kept drawing what I saw and eventually the details filled in. Knowing when to stop is a challenge especially when capturing a likeness. I admire artists who know how to make each mark meaningful without overdoing the image with details. Areas may be gradated or completely lost, but our eyes fill in the details so the subject seem complete. Every week I hope to get closer to this goal.

Pencil drawing

Pencil