Cyn, very nice drawing. You really captured the atmosphere of a rainy day, the reflections on the floor are very wel done, and the composition is very good too.
Airscapes, yes I am having problems drawing figures ... in pencil !!! Specially the arms width, legs lenght when there is a perspective issue involved, or the angles of shoulders and hips. I also must admit that I am a little impatient and I do not like to spend much time doing a previous sketch. Perhaps I should let the sketch rest and see it with fresh eyes the following day
Another thing that I don't master yet is the eraser. When I try to put a light in a drawing by erasing, I finish with a white spot that stands out a lot, so I smudge it, I erase it again, then smudge, erase...smudge...and I LOST MY PATIENCE!!! Uf ...
Claudio

Well, I used the morning to go through last Brenda's lesson again. I have done the head in graphite yesterday, now I tried charcoal.
The first photo is my pencil sketch. It is not too bad, but when I compare it with the original ... well ... let's say that it is not the same guy. Sorry, Brenda.
Following that one, there are the succesive steps in charcoal. I used a cheap manila paper, 18" x 24", 8mm and 5mm willow charcoal. The paper is really bad, so smudging with the fingers is very difficult.
Constructive critics are welcomed
Claudio

Claudio, your interpretation is very interesting but this is about charcoal what I am trying to say. Learn to create charcoal pieces starting with a black covered in characoal sheet of paper.
Here you used charcoal like a graphite pencil + smudging.The real usage of charcoal , charcoal way is to get from black to light areas by erasing the charcoal and adding it where the drawing asks for darker areas.
And above all avoid lines. try to create volume by value.
I might try this same portrait this afternoon and film my steps to illustrate better what I am saying here.
I did Obama's portrait like you but that was before i found the right way with charcoal.Now i cannot return to that stage.

Thank you Claudio for the nice comments. I am like you, I get very impatient, especially when I have to do the same one over, or erase and smudge myself into a mess..

I forgot that I did another in charcoal until Elena talked about erasing. The eagle in my gallery was one of those, I had to black it out and then erase the light spots. Is that what you meant Elena? You are good at charcoal and I am really new to anything other than pencil.

This is the eagle.

Yes, Cyn it's about erasing the charcoal to obtain light values and adding charcoal to obtain dark values.In your eagle portrait seems to me that you added the background at the end.The charcoal drawing starts with a background in charcoal, so the whole surface of the paper is black, you use a medium tone charcoal stick or pencil.From there you either erase or add charcoal for values and shapes.

Here is a 10 min.sketch in charcoal on white paper; I used a charcoal pencil soft so the treatmenat of the medium is similar to graphite. Then I smudged the charcoal. Neither version satisfies me as they do not create volume and show the real virtues of charcoal as a medium different from graphite.This afternoon I will do a step by step wip in charcoal the way is recommended in the books on charcoal.

Elena, thanks for your comments. I was happy with my drawing until I saw yours
And besides ... ten minutes!!!!
Obviously one of my mistakes is that I do not start with a good sketch, so the final product has little resemblance with the original figure (although, both guys seem to have lived in the same town )
Maybe I'll try again in a medium format, 12x18, but not smaller as I don't use charcoal pencils.
Cyn, I like your eagle. It is a beautiful work!
Claudio

I am enjoying all of your charcoal work.
Here are a few that I have complete with my students (I like to work along with them so if they have a question about how to do something I can show them on my own work) - the two pop can drawings were with Art Fundamental classes and the sheet draped over the chair was with a beginning drawing class. I really like working with charcoal although it is always a challenge to completely avoid smearing anything.
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WOW fabric is SOOO hard to do .. LOVE Your work!

Elena, thank you for the help and explaining charcoal. It seems so quick and easy for you. And you are good at it.

Claudio, thank you for the nice comment about the eagle. You are so funny about the guy you drew. I love your sense of humor.

bkluver, wow, what can I say. I hope to get as good as you and Elena with charcoal.. Well, I would like to be as good as the 2 of you, in any medium.

Thank you airscapes and Cyn!
I think the fabric drawing is one of my favorites to teach and draw with charcoal.

I was just reading back through this entire topic - at school we use both thin willow (although we also have thicker pieces of soft charcoal), as well as the compressed. Personally I usually stick to the thin willow unless I have large areas to cover. I generally work from light to dark with charcoal (although I enjoy working dark to light with graphite powder and eraser). I do use the eraser for light areas but we also teach charcoal with white chalk (just the plain old chalkboard white chalk).

I also just use hairspray to set a drawing. Although it darkens it slightly when sprayed, it usually lightens up as it dries. Hairspray also allows you to create some really dark areas if you spray it in between layers.

Bkluver, very nice work. Sheets seem very difficult to do. And you reached very soft tones for charcoal.
Claudio

Thank you, Claudio.
Barb

Hi, Barb, glad to see you here with such nice works.We need more help with this topic.

Here are my steps of a rushed charcoal portrait that i did in one hour and I might revise tomorrow.I used chracoal sticks and also pencil, eraser. I really need to go back and create mass and volume.

Wow, Elena that's wonderful. Thank you so much for the WIP. I wondered how the background was put in to make it look smooth and seamless. I will have to try one again now.

Elena, thanks for your WIP. It is a technique that I have yet to try. The few times that I tried to erase a smudged area, I left a clear spot standing out so much that I was forced to add charcoal, thus going back to square one
One question: once you have covered your sheet (step one), do you draw some (guiding) lines after starting to erase?
Claudio

Cyn, the background was done holding a charcoal stick medium tone horizontally and dragging it down the paper.You do this until you fill the tooth.

Claudio,No guiding lines. At this point you really need to know your shapes. On this i made many mistakes so I had to put charcoal again as by erasing you obtain a white area.It wasn't the best way to demonstrate the technique since this particular portrait I find very difficult to reproduce.But anyway this is the way it works from dark to light.Thanks for the comments but It's far from being a good portrait.

here is the update.


Just compare with the charcoal sketch.

Wow, its effects are really good!

Exercice with living model. Charcoal.
(framed for fun!)

I love the free flowing lines in this study! Excellent!

It is interesting how framing a drawing can make it so much more! I guess it all depends on the volume of work some one produce and their budget, as to whether they put their work in a folder or cardboard tube in the closet or display it on the walls. I suppose wall space could be an issue

An, I like how you worked on this live sketch.The broken lines instead of round shapes add a lot of originality to the anatomy of this nude, looks so artistic and interesting.The geometrical touch could be an approach to figure drawing for excellent effects.
Tres bien, mon vieux.

Merci, ma grande ! I think if we decide to depart from what we see (life or photo) to invent a personal composition, we may have a lot of funs. But we must first learn to draw correctly (a real person or an object). A bientot,
An

Totalement d'accord.

Chapeau, mon ami!
Very artistic. I agree with Elena, the broken lines give it a lot of originality and dynamic.
Thanks for posting here. I always love you sketches; they look simple, but they are not.
Encore, bravo!

HEllo every one. My name is Jivka. I have only 2 pictures with charcoal. I like drawing with charcoal, beacause it have more contrast and it seem alive.
my pic .

This is a lesson in Brenda's book - "drawing for dummies". it is with charcoal, kneaded eraser and rubber eraser.

I like this clip.

Hi, Jivka.As BMP files do not show on the screen , will you please convert them to jpg and and post again your drawing? Thank you.

thank you

That's a nice woods landscape, Jivka.

Jivka I like it vey much. You did a very nice and subtle work in highlights and shadows. Congratulations.

Thank you, Claudio Pousa

Bellydancer.
Elena, I post it here because it's in charcoal. Very soft charcoal.
From weekly challenge. Some details have been improved.

beautiful girl. An; she looks Persian to me.Nice pose and the belly, excellent draw!