It is not known when man first used coal material for drawing. But coal taken from an extinct fire became one of the first artistic materials. The technique has a centuries-old history, but does not lose its relevance among modern artists.
Charcoal drawing is often the first thing taught in art school or courses. The first charcoal sketches are remembered for a long time. You will understand shading techniques, general principles of drawing and sketching. When working with this soft material, the student learns not to be distracted by minor details, but to perceive the drawing as a whole.
History of technology
The first mentions of technology appeared in the 15th century. Then they learned to fix the material on a sheet. At that time, artists used charcoal. The pressed type was invented in the 19th century. Even then they noticed that he was blacker and fatter. This means it fits more tightly onto the paper.
From this point on, many prominent artists began to press coal to use it for future sketches. Although the technique is fragmentary, the masters have learned to create luxurious works of art.
Types of coal
- charcoal - grape or willow charcoal of various diameters and sizes;
- pressed - an artificial material made from powder.
Vegetable glue is added to the pressed coal, which helps it stick to the paper longer.
What tools will you need?
Charcoal + paper. Is anything other than this needed? Yes. You also need tools and materials to prevent the coal from crumbling. This means it will last many times longer. Our teachers teach you how to work with such materials.
What may be useful:
- rough paper or special paper. A smooth surface will not work - the coal chips will crumble;
- means for removal - a regular eraser or cloth;
- fixatives are special means that secure the material to the surface of the paper under a thin film layer.
What types of techniques are there?
In the first lessons you will master pencil drawing, and only then start working with charcoal. Although charcoal graphics are quicker to master, they require some skill. Different degrees of pressure, drawing individual details or shading - all this requires skills and clear actions.
Here are the main techniques:
- rubbing - distributed over the paper using a finger or other devices;
- cross hatching - drawing in different directions;
- soft shading - color distribution without the help of fingers or a torchon.
- Our course teachers will tell you more about the techniques. They will tell, show, teach!
How to draw
Why is it important to sketch? Why compose a still life? How can you use bread crumbs when drawing? It is unlikely that even an adult will be able to understand such issues on his own. Why, if there are specialists?
To decide whether you need drawing courses for beginners, it is important to know the process at least approximately:
- Before drawing a picture, the artist usually makes a sketch and composes it. This is necessary to understand the proportions of the object and its location on the sheet.
- After the sketch is ready, the general outlines are transferred to paper. First - outlines, then - painting over the dark parts, and then - applying light colors with pastels.
- When the outlines are clearly visible, the artist draws individual details, objects, areas, and background.
- At the end, it is important to secure the drawing with varnish or other fixative, otherwise it may crumble.
Coal. It is highly likely that the very first graphic material in human history was a simple coal from a fire. They have been drawing with it at all times and it is surprising that even now it has not lost its relevance and the love of artists.
Coal is a very beautiful material with great graphic capabilities. It gives a wide range of tone, beautiful velvety and varied texture. They are used to draw on paper, cardboard and canvas, combined with any other soft materials (sepia, sanguine and chalk), but are more often used as a self-sufficient medium.
It's great for sketching and allows you to create dynamic, lively drawings. The material rubs beautifully, is quickly adjusted, can be easily erased with an eraser and self-sharpens during the drawing process. They can apply thin strokes and create broad “strokes” by drawing with a plane. The charcoal drawing technique even gave rise to such a strange term as “picturesque drawing”.
And coal is good for everyone, except for one thing - it adheres very loosely to the surface. This is the most free-flowing graphic material. This is why coal work is very easy to smudge and cannot be stored unsecured.
Its softness also has its advantages. You don’t have to be afraid to make a mistake - the material can easily be knocked off the surface with a cloth or the bristles of a brush, and thus the design can be adjusted many times, achieving the best result. This is why it is often used to apply a design to canvas before painting.
Zhaoming Wu. Charcoal portrait. I.E.Repin. Portrait of Eleonora Duse. Charcoal on canvas. Zhaoming Wu. Charcoal portrait. Training production. Coal. Chinese school. Coal. I.S. Kulikov. Portrait of a peasant woman. Charcoal, pastel.
In the 15th century, an interesting method of fixing coal became widespread in Italy, when a design was applied to a paper surface coated with glue, and after completion, the work was kept under steam, and thus the coal was fixed.
It must be said that people invented many different methods of fastening - dipped in a glue solution, treated with rosin dissolved in gasoline, sprayed with skimmed and strained milk from a spray bottle, sprayed with beer, but none of them turned out perfect.
Nowadays, charcoal is fixed in the same way as other soft graphic materials - with a special fixative or hairspray.
There are two types of coal - natural and pressed. Natural has an irregular shape and different thicknesses, it always has a core, as it is made from real wood sticks. Such sticks crumble more easily, and sometimes among them there are unevenly burned specimens. Such branches draw pale colors and scratch the paper.
If you live in a private house and have a stove, you can easily make charcoal yourself. When I was little, my father prepared himself such charcoal for drawing and painting. To do this, he took willow or birch sticks with a diameter of 3-6 mm, peeled from bark, and vertically packed them in a vertical tin can. Then he filled the holes between the rods with sand and closed the jar very tightly so that oxygen would not penetrate into it. For greater confidence in the tightness of the lid, the seams can be covered with clay. Afterwards, it had to be placed in the coals of the stove for 5-6 hours and wait a few more hours until the jar cooled down. The end result was cool artistic charcoal.
I.E.Repin. Portrait of Romanov. Zhaoming Wu Coal. Charcoal portrait. N.I. Feshin. Sketch.Coal. Zhaoming Wu. Charcoal portrait. N.I. Feshin. Sketch.Coal. I.E.Repin. Portrait of M.O. Levenfeld. Coal, sanguine. N.I. Feshin. A man from Bali. Coal. Casey Children. Coal. I.E. Repin. Portrait of I.S. Ostroukhov. Coal.
The pressed rod was invented in the 19th century. It is made from coal chips, held together with vegetable glue. Unlike wood, it has a regular shape, uniform structure and gives a deeper tone and is produced from one to four hardness numbers. In addition, it adheres better to the surface, although it still requires fixation.
This charcoal can also be purchased in the form of wooden pencils. In practice, a charcoal pencil turns out to be very convenient - it is convenient to draw small details. In Russia, such a pencil is produced under the name “Retouch” of softness 3M (Produced by Krasin). Lately, the quality of “Retouching” leaves much to be desired. I bought it quite recently and was very disappointed - it draws palely and, moreover, it constantly contains scratchy clay lumps. It's a shame, because 15 years ago it was great.
The predecessor of pressed coal in the 19th century was fat coal - this is ordinary wood, but additionally impregnated with vegetable oil. I have not tried to draw with this material, they say that it gives a darker line and crumbles a little less than simple wood.
Now on sale you can find any charcoal, classic wood, in the form of pressed bars, rods and pencils in a wooden frame. To work with coal, given its flowability, it makes sense to use paper or cardboard with a rough surface.
Charcoal pencils.
Paper sticks for shading charcoal.
Charcoal pencils
Set of all types of coal.
Set of all types of coal.
Set of all types of coal.
To summarize, I would like to note that I don’t see much point in drawing with charcoal when pressed charcoal exists. At one time, I suffered greatly with the fragility of my charcoal drawings, and most of them had to be thrown away due to poor preservation. Therefore, when pressed coal appeared on sale, it was happiness and salvation for me.
But you should try working with both to form your own opinion.
There is another wonderful pencil, similar to charcoal, but different in composition - this is the Italian pencil. But more about him in the next article.
Charcoal is one of the most basic drawing tools. Like a pencil, it has its own set of advantages and disadvantages. To get the most out of the medium, you can learn a few basic charcoal drawing techniques for beginners so you can start sketching with confidence.
Generally, charcoal is great for sketching. It comes in a variety of hardness levels that allow you to quickly move your hand across the paper, easily blend and transfer fine detail when needed.
Common charcoal drawing techniques and tools
First, you need several types of coal. Charcoal comes in two different forms: charcoal and compressed. It's important to know the difference between them.
From left to right: charcoal, compressed black charcoal and compressed white charcoal
Charcoal
Charcoal is a soft stick, very light in color. It weighs almost nothing and moves easily across paper. Because it's light, you won't get a dark black color. Instead, you'll want to use charcoal for painting and for blending.Pressed coal
Compressed charcoal looks more like a pencil—in fact, it's often produced in pencil form! Here the coal is packed very tightly. Difficult to mix and difficult to wash. Compressed charcoal is best for fine details and when you want a bold shadow. You can also find white pressed charcoal that works well for highlights and accents.
Klyachka - eraser for coal
This eraser is very reminiscent of clay - you can shape it with your fingers and use it in reductive drawings. To clean the eraser, simply remember it in your hands. You will feel like a child again!
5 Charcoals You Should Know
With charcoal, compressed charcoal and nag in your arsenal, you can start trying out three simple charcoal painting techniques. You can then combine them into more interesting compositions. Experiment on rough paper.Mixing Charcoal
Charcoal is great as a base for your drawing; you can coat your composition with charcoal and rub it into the paper with your fingers. You can then layer more charcoal on top or grind it again.
Compressed Charcoal Line Drawing
Compressed charcoal is best reserved for fine lines, intricate details, and achieving bold blacks. Because charcoal is so dense, it does not move as easily as charcoal. Although you can sketch with it, compressed charcoal is not ideal for quick drawings where your hand needs to move at lightning speed. Rather, it's best suited for jobs where you're drawing lines, especially since compressed charcoal is difficult to erase.
Drawing with a nag
Have you ever tried to draw? The nag is perfect for drawing! First create a base layer with charcoal, then use a blot to remove some of the charcoal, creating an image with contrasting lines. This tool won't remove lines as cleanly as a regular eraser, but it can pick up excess charcoal. I like to stick it into the tip and use it as an eraser.
Layers of pressed and charcoal
Start by painting with charcoal as your base. Rub it with your finger. Then draw more precise details using compressed charcoal. For a special accent, use white pressed charcoal.
Combining all methods into one composition
Here coal shows all its possibilities. When you combine charcoal, compressed charcoal, and painting sticks, you get a better feel for your painting. You can achieve this in several ways, but start by mixing charcoal on your paper. Then, using the charcoal, draw the image, removing a layer of charcoal. Finish the composition with pressed charcoal, adding subtle detailing lines and highlights. Guys, we put our soul into the site. Thank you for that
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The skill of some artists surpasses all boundaries. They draw with anything: oil, acrylic paints, charcoal, ballpoint pens or a simple pencil, but their work is indistinguishable from photographs. The considerable perseverance and talent of the authors make these works more than just photocopies. They contain life, the artist’s vision, emotions and the illusion of the world in which we live.
website collected 15 artists, looking at whose works we literally cannot believe our eyes.
Diego Fazio
Diego works like an inkjet printer, starting to draw from the edge of the sheet. Draws with a simple pencil and charcoal. It takes the artist 200 hours of work to create one portrait.
Gregory Tilker
Gregory Tilker paints his “rainy” canvases with a brush, using watercolors and oil paints. Viewing Gregory's paintings is like traveling by car on a cold, stormy day.
Ruth Tyson
British artist Ruth Tyson, like many of her colleagues, does not have an artistic education, but has an original manner of performing her works. She draws with graphite and watercolor pencils, but sometimes also paints.
Roberto Bernardi
It's hard to believe that Roberto Bernardi's "sweet" still lifes were not filmed. Each still life conveys reflections on the glossy surface of the table, folds and highlights with amazing accuracy.
Robin Eley
The London-based artist creates large-scale, realistic oil paintings. In the paintings of this collection, the artist gracefully “hides” the nakedness of human bodies with transparent film.
Gottfried Helnwein
In his works, Helnwein uses mainly watercolors. He works as a painter, draftsman, photographer, sculptor and artist, revealing all aspects of his talent.
Vincent Fatauzo
Renowned Australian artist Vincent Fatauzo's work has been exhibited around the world. The portrait of Heath Ledger was painted a few weeks before the actor's death.
Camalchi Laureano
Kamalki Laureano is a talented Dominican artist. He uses the technique of painting with acrylic paints on canvas. For him, work is not just an imitation of photography, but an imitation of life.
Paul Cadden
Thomas Arvid
Thomas has no formal education. Having developed mastery using his own training system, the artist came to his own theme - the theme of wine. This is how “Thomas Arvid’s Wine Cellar” arose - a series of works depicting bottles, corks, corkscrews and glasses with sparkling drinks.
A grid will help you arrange objects on the paper. After making a sketch, try drawing with a charcoal pencil.
Look around your house - and you will certainly see things that will make an interesting composition.
Arrangement of objects in the picture
Sometimes even a professional artist finds it difficult to correctly determine the relative sizes and proportions of objects. A solution to the problem can be a coordinate grid applied to a sheet of paper that is placed behind the still life. This cut is also applied to another sheet prepared for the drawing. Because the grid behind the still life is on a white background, not only will the objects themselves be clear, but so will the shadows they cast. However, in this lesson we will be primarily interested in the volume of objects, and we will deal with shadows in the following drawing lessons.
D For the drawing lesson you will need:
A sheet of white cardboard measuring 43 cm high and 1 m or more wide
Large sheet of paper
Adhesive masking tape
Metal ruler
Eraser
Pencils: 2B and charcoal pencil
Knife or pencil sharpener
Grid marking
Mark vertical lines 20 cm from each edge of the cardboard. Trim the sheet along these lines and then glue the cut strips in place using duct tape. You will have two bendable sides with which you can install this screen. Now take a 2B pencil and draw a frame in the center of the screen, placing it as close to the bottom edge of the cardboard as possible.
Draw horizontal and vertical lines, dividing the frame into squares. In our case, we get 8x8 cm squares. Now place the objects selected for the drawing and behind them a screen with a coordinate grid.
Smoothing tones
Charcoal has a powdery structure, so it is best to draw on a rough, textured surface that will hold grains of powder. Once you have mastered a new material, try drawing with charcoal on paper with a strong texture. The large grain of such paper will give your drawing more expressiveness.
How to use a charcoal pencil
The outlines of our drawing are drawn with a 2B pencil, which can be easily erased with an eraser, but our own shadows are made using a charcoal pencil, which allows us to draw bold dark lines.
Take a charcoal pencil and move the IM across the paper to see what lines it leaves. At first, do not press the pencil, then press a little and compare the drawn lines. Try to stroke with a charcoal pencil in different directions, watch how the texture of the stroke changes. Soon you will master shading with a charcoal pencil and begin to use it in the same way as a graphite
1 Draw a coordinate grid on a piece of paper
Take a 2B pencil and draw another grid on a piece of paper. You need to divide the sheet into the same number of squares as on the grid screen. Only the squares on the sheet will be smaller - in our case 6x6 cm.
2 Let's start the drawing with a bottle
Since the bottle is the tallest object in our composition, we’ll start the drawing with it. Use a 2B pencil. Take a good look at where and how the contours of the bottle intersect with the squares of the coordinate grid behind it. Check the accuracy of each line by drawing it on a piece of paper.
3 Correlating the drawing with a still life
Continue drawing the bottle - don't forget its hinged cap - constantly referring to the grid. Draw the outline with small strokes, and not with one continuous line, so as not to make mistakes.
Adding other items
Having outlined the location of the first object on paper - in our case it is a bottle - you can now add other nearby objects. Continue to draw outlines using the grid and you will be able to maintain the correct proportions of all objects.
4 Drawing a glass
Draw the outline of the glass, still referring to the grid. The glass is in front of the bottle, that is, closer to you, so on paper its bottom will be located slightly lower than the bottom of the bottle.
5 Planning the coffee pot
Following the grid as before, sketch out the outline of the coffee pot. Carefully study its shape and make the lines clearer in those places where the shadow lies. While correcting the contour of the coffee pot with an eraser, you could accidentally erase the lines of the coordinate grid - do not forget to restore them.
6 Finishing the sketch with a pencil
Draw the details of the coffee pot. Now you have a preliminary sketch, a group of objects with the correct proportions, which means you can move on to the charcoal pencil.
Working with water-soluble pencil
If you want to add color to your drawing, you can do this with a water-soluble pencil. The finished drawing in this case will resemble watercolor. When the paper is dry, return to the water-soluble pencil and add new strokes
7 Apply shadows to the bottle
Look from which side the light falls on your still life. Then take a sharpened charcoal pencil and apply a few light, thick strokes on the bottle, leaving the parts where the highlights should be (we talked about how to distribute light and dark tones in issue No. 1 of our magazine).
8 Adding volume to the glass
First, draw the hinged cap of the bottle with the sharp tip of a pencil, then move on to the glass. Using frequent lines, shade the shadow on the right side of the glass and on its bottom. Cover the rest of the surface with lighter strokes. Do not paint areas that are exposed to light.
9 Drawing a coffee pot
Cover the completed half of the drawing with a sheet of paper to prevent it from smearing. Then start shading the coffee pot, leaving vertical streaks of highlights white.
10 Strengthening the shadows on the coffee pot
Gradually increase the shadows on the coffee pot. Cover the white stripes with light strokes - only narrow sparkling highlights should stand out.
A Coordinate grid
The coordinate grid helps to arrange objects exactly as they are located in reality and maintain their proportions. When the drawing is ready, the coordinate grid on a sheet of paper can be removed with an eraser.
B Coal
The contours drawn with a 2B pencil are completely hidden under the shading done with a charcoal pencil. Shadows made with charcoal are deeper and more intense than shadows made with graphite pencil.
B Volume
Having sketched the objects, the artist at the next stage of work tries to give them volume and emphasize the rounded shape and convex surface of the objects. This is achieved through a combination of shadows, midtones and highlights.
