Draw charcoal nature animals brown paper. Charcoal drawing: from the origins to the present

It is not known when man first used charcoal material for drawing. But coal, taken out of an extinct fire, became one of the first artistic materials. The technique has a long history, but does not lose its relevance among contemporary 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 the technique of toning, the 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 mention of technology appeared in the XV century. Then they learned to fix the material on the sheet. At that time, artists used charcoal. The pressed look was invented in the 19th century. Even then they noticed that he was more black and fat. This means that it adheres more tightly to the paper.

From that moment on, many prominent artists began to press charcoal to use it for future sketches. Although the technique is fragmentary, the masters have learned to create chic works of art.

Types of coal

• wood - grape or willow coal of different diameters and sizes;
• pressed - an artificial material made from powder.

Vegetable glue is added to the pressed charcoal, which helps it stay on paper longer.

What tools will be needed

Charcoal + paper. Is anything more than this needed? Yes. More tools and materials are needed so that the coal does not crumble. This means it will last much longer. Our teachers teach how to work with such materials.

What might be useful:

• rough paper or specialty paper. A smooth surface will not work - the coal chips will crumble;
• means for removal - an ordinary eraser or a cloth;
• fixatives - special means that fix the material on the surface of the paper under a thin film layer.

What are the techniques

In the first lessons, you will master the pencil drawing, and only then start working with charcoal. Although charcoal graphics are mastered faster, they require some skill. Different degrees of pressure, drawing individual details or shading - all this requires skills and clear actions.

Here are the basic techniques:

• rubbing - distributed over the paper with a finger or other devices;
• cross hatching - drawing in different directions;
• soft shading - distribution of color without the help of fingers or torchon.
• The instructors of our courses will tell you the details about the techniques. Tell, show, teach!

How to draw

Why is sketching important? Why compose a still life? How can you use breadcrumb when drawing? It is unlikely that even an adult will be able to figure out such issues on their own. Why, if there are specialists?

To decide if you need drawing courses for beginners, it is important to know the process at least roughly:

1. Before painting a picture, the artist usually sketches and arranges it. This is necessary to understand the proportions of the object, its location on the sheet.
2. After the sketch is ready, the general outlines are transferred to paper. First - the outlines, then - painting over the dark parts, and then - applying light colors with pastels.
3. When the outlines are clearly visible, the artist draws individual details, objects, areas, background.
4. At the end, it is important to fix the drawing with varnish or other fixative, otherwise it may crumble.

As a material, coal has been used for many centuries. Its analogue was drawn in ancient Greece. Craftsmen created "charcoal" by mixing charred willow branches, nuts and grapes. The history of the graphite pencil dates back to 16th century England.

Pencil and charcoal are materials with different characteristics. The first is a hard instrument, the second is a soft one. The technique of drawing with these materials differs, first of all, because of these properties. Charcoal, unlike a pencil, is not used for detailed objects. Soft material is intended for sketches, sketches, modeling of chiaroscuro.

Charcoal should be used on paper with a rough surface. Otherwise, the material will not adhere well to the base and quickly crumble. You can draw with a pencil on the most ordinary paper.

Beginning artists are recommended to use graphite pencils to master the drawing. You can easily control the line, erase failed details, drawing them again. With coal, these manipulations will not work. It lends itself well to correction, but can leave unpleasant dark spots. To master both tools, you should familiarize yourself with the basic techniques for using them.

Pencil: Basic Drawing Techniques

The main pencil drawing technique is the line. Depending on the texture of the paper and the type of instrument, it can be clear, pronounced or barely noticeable. The pencil allows you to qualitatively feel and master. The clarity of the line also depends on the pressure on the tool. With a single pencil, you can change the intensity of the contour, highlighting the most important points.

Another technique is hatching with a transition of tone. When creating it with a pencil, you need to smoothly change the pressure on the entire area selected for toning. Creating beautiful hatching the first time is very difficult, but constant practice and ease of adjustment will help you quickly master the commonly used graphic technique.

Drawing with charcoal

The main technique of drawing with charcoal is working with the tone of the image. It will take much less time to master it than when working with a pencil. However, there are some tricks here.

When creating a shadow or working with depth, one should not draw in the same way as with a graphite tool - vary the degree of pressure. Start from the darkest place and, gradually weakening, draw only 1/3 of the intended space. Next, using a napkin or finger, blend the material in the desired direction.

If you decide to work with charcoal on the principle of a pencil, you will get a sad result: the tinting will quickly lose its properties and turn into a dark monochromatic spot.

Please note: coal is practically not used to draw even, smooth lines. With its help, basically, toning is created, and depth is also given to the picture. In this case, the initial sketch is often done in pencil (thin dashed lines).

Coal works require careful handling and storage. To keep the image without deformation, it should be placed under glass. You can also use a special fixative or simple hairspray.

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The skill of some artists transcends all boundaries. They draw with anything: oils, acrylics, charcoal, ballpoint pens or a simple pencil - but their work is indistinguishable from photographs. Considerable perseverance and talent of the authors make these works something more than just photocopies. They contain life, the vision of the artist, emotions and the illusion of the world in which we live.

website collected 15 artists, looking at the work of which we literally do not believe our eyes.

Diego Fazio

Diego works like an inkjet printer, starting 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 watercolor and oil paints. Viewing Gregory's paintings is like traveling by car on a cold rainy day.

Ruth Tyson

British artist Ruth Tyson, like many of her colleagues, does not have an art education, but she has an original manner of performing her works. She draws with graphite and watercolor pencils, but sometimes she also takes on paints.

Roberto Bernardi

It's hard to believe that the "sweet" still lifes of Roberto Bernardi are not filmed. Each still life with amazing accuracy conveys reflections on the glossy surface of the table, folds and highlights.

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 a transparent film.

Gottfried Helnwein

Helnwein mostly uses watercolors in his work. He works as a painter, draftsman, photographer, sculptor and artist, revealing all aspects of his talent.

Vincent Fatauzzo

The works of the famous Australian artist Vincent Fatauzzo are exhibited all over the world. The portrait of Heath Ledger was painted a few weeks before the death of the actor.

Camalchi Laureano

Kamalchi 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 gained mastery in his own system of education, the artist came to his theme - the theme of wine. This is how Thomas Arvid's Wine Cellar was born - a series of works depicting bottles, corks, corkscrews and glasses with sparkling drinks.

Whatever the reasons for this medium's popularity (and there are many), there are certain charcoal painting techniques used by many artists every day. In this article, I will go over the most important aspects and show small tricks to help you. Watch the video below and then follow your lead.

You can use any kind of charcoal for these techniques. Just contact your local craft store and they will help you (see point 09 for different types of coal). If this article inspires you to explore the topic on your own, why not check out Schoolism.com for a variety of courses, workshops, and more. It's just a great way to learn new things with professionals.

1. Make the main thing the main thing

The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing. Speaking as an artist, the main thing is called the essence. This is just as important in charcoal drawing as in any other technique. What your drawing is about and what you want to say with it is the main thing when creating it. Once you settle on the "main idea" or essence, everything you do from that moment on, every move and every detail you put in or decide to take out, should act to reinforce that aspect.

2. Know the value of contrast

The word contrast is used throughout art and seems to be a little confusing. Contrast is a simple transition from white to black (light to dark) on a scale of 1 to 10. 1 is the white of the sheet and 10 is black. Thus, 5 is 50% or a “halftone”, a gray color, something in between white and black. Any drawing consists of contrasts (shadow and light), regardless of color.

To help you with this, I advise you to work from the middle to the edge. Keep your darkest color dark (shadows), no darker than 6 or 7 on the contrast scale; and the lightest (light and everything in the light) is 3 or 4. Move towards the dark (accents) and light (highlights).

Imagine that accents and highlights are twins living in different neighborhoods. They are not the most important element of your drawing. But they are important in general.

3. Use Hierarchy of Contrast

There is no doubt that a successful drawing reads quickly and touches emotionally. Using contrast or tone, highlighting different areas of a drawing with charcoal can be very helpful when drawing.

The image above, based on a photograph by Josiah Byse, uses dark contrasts. Notice the light on his cheek and the shadow on the rest of the body.

The use of contrast hierarchies allows the viewer to see what he needs in the first place. In this picture, Steve is smoking his pipe. Everything else becomes less important. He is the essence of the drawing.

4. Squint

Sometimes 100% vision doesn't help. When we watch what we draw, a lot of information passes through our eyes. And from this, the drawing is filled with many extraneous details that worsen the effect of the image. The goal is to edit and simplify.

Squinting blurs the big picture, and we see a simplified version of the whole picture, clearly noticing all the simple shapes. Reproducing these simple shapes helps in creating the essence of the whole drawing.

5. Explore thick and thin lines

Applying thick and thin lines is an interesting idea, and it's funny that many artists don't use this useful technique in their work. If each line has the same width and is drawn with the same pressure, the charcoal drawing looks like a normal coloring book, which makes it boring. The use of thin and thick lines enlivens the image.

And how will you apply this technique, and what do you need to know? The main rule is that the top lines of objects are thinner because the light falls on them, and the bottom lines can be thicker due to shadows. It's all. And it's very simple. Look at the smooth lines and their thickness in the drawing of the dog from above. Now you know.

6. Use an eraser

The most interesting thing about coal is that it can be easily controlled. You can move it without any problem. Once you've drawn something with charcoal, you can remove it or erase it where it's not needed. In the picture above, the erased part shows where the light hits the model's head.

7. Buy a Toolbox

Usually artists have a whole set of tools, and charcoal drawing tools look cool. The picture above shows some of them: a very small eraser that erases with a thin line; a kneaded eraser that can be kneaded and crushed; and a hardcore eraser pen for tough, heavy-duty erasing jobs.

Using charcoal or pastels requires us to apply them, and there are many ways to achieve this. The most obvious is your finger, but it can leave streaks or be too small. Wipe Webril wipes are a great option when working with charcoal.

8. Put on a glove

Did you know that oils and fats on our hands can ruin the cleanliness of paper? Oils can soak into the paper and repel the charcoal. To solve this problem, use a glove or place another sheet of paper under your arm to protect your work.

9. Try charcoal pencils

Charcoal can be of different types, from pencils and sticks to large pieces. The choice is yours. The photo above shows three examples of charcoal pencils. Be aware that they can create dirt, so after using them, it's worth spraying your drawing with charcoal fixative to be sure.

10. Keep improving

Remember that drawing is difficult and can sometimes be tiring. Dont be upset. Art is extremely difficult and it may take time to feel happy in it.

Learning and development always go together. Find contact with artists you admire. Be humble and ask them for advice about your work. Ask about your weaknesses, how you can get started and what to focus on. Ask to be honest. These are good questions.

We all have moments when we feel unhappy. Even now I feel doubts and sometimes inspiration overwhelms me. So get on with your business, spread your wings and catch the wind.

Plants are an invariable component of landscapes and most still lifes. Today we will consider drawing irises with charcoal. Follow the tips of the tutorial - from the location of the object on the sheet to the last stroke - and you will be able to masterfully draw a flower

DRAW WITH CHARCOAL

This drawing tool has many different forms. In this picture, from bottom to top, there are: a cylinder-shaped stick of natural drawing charcoal; a stick of natural drawing coal of a rectangular shape; charcoal pencil; another type of charcoal pencil is in a paper frame, which you tear off a little as the tip of the pencil wears off; and a cylindrical stick of coal in a metal frame. Natural drawing charcoal lays well on paper and is easily rubbed, so they can achieve expressive top effects; The charcoal pencil is able to create crisper stumps and strokes, but they don't rub as easily.

The use of shading and soft matter.

To grind coal strokes and apply tone in narrow places, shadings of various sizes are designed. They are made of tightly rolled paper, with conical or sharp tips. Use the tapered end to work in small areas. A crumpled soft cloth can be used to erase bad spots in a natural charcoal drawing. (The chalk mark is harder to erase.) You can also rub the tone over a large area of ​​the drawing with a piece of soft cloth.

How to hold coal.

When a piece of natural charcoal breaks or wears down to a small piece, you can buy a frame and place the remaining piece in it. Hold the rim of the charcoal as if you were holding a brush; fingers should be located away from the tip of the charcoal stick, so you get distinct lines. If you are working with just a charcoal sharpener, without a rim, hold it in the same way, but the fingers must be closer to the tip, otherwise the sharpening will break. A charcoal pencil is also held, but you can hold it. like a regular pencil.

Rubber bands (erasers).

Coal is easily erased, and when working with it, artists use plastic gum. In the store, you can recognize it by its square shape. It stretches like clay or putty, and takes on any shape. You can roll a large ball to clean large areas of the design, or sharpen the rubber band to work on small details. By pressing and immediately removing the elastic, you will remove most of the tones. Rubbing with such an elastic band should be as light as possible and only in extreme cases, since this leads to abrasion of the surface of the paper.

Drawing lines and strokes.

The easiest way to draw with charcoal is to combine thin lines with broader strokes on regular drawing paper. On this fragment of the landscape, the thick blunt end of a charcoal pencil marks the tone on the trunks of three trees with free strokes. The artist darkens the tones on the trunks with stronger pressure. Then, with a sharp, thin tip of a hard charcoal pencil, he draws branches and twigs in sharper lines.

Paper designed for drawing with charcoal.

Paper intended for drawing with charcoal, but equally suitable for working with chalk and pencil, has a slightly corrugated and very dense surface. On such a surface, soft, lively tones are perfectly obtained by shading, as you can see in this portrait fragment. You will not spoil the paper even with frequent erasure, which is visible in the illuminated areas of the face. The surface of the paper is suitable for drawing wide strokes, which are used to draw hair, and for clear lines, which are the eyes depicted here.

Drawing lines and tones.

To create soft, delicate tones, the artist works with hard and medium-hard charcoal pencils, rubbing the strokes with the help of shading. First, he applies lighter tones to tree trunks and rubs the strokes, then darker ones and rubs them again. On thick branches, the strokes are rubbed with the tip of the shading, and thin branches are drawn with a charcoal pencil and not rubbed. It's important to know when to stop feathering, otherwise your drawing will look messy.

Paper with a rough surface.

Paper with a rough texture, with even more so-called teeth, is also great for drawing with charcoal. Thanks to the uneven surface of the paper, the feathered areas look more alive - pay attention to the texture of the shadow on the skin. The broad strokes with which the hair is drawn are even more distinct on this type of paper. And the sharp, honed lines that depict eyelashes and eyebrows look uneven and alive.