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All Hail the mighty PENCIL and all things graphite.
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Message
Posted
Like me, I suspect your art began with the humble pencil. In my case back in the dark mists of time, in a world of short pants and gas-lighting. Since then I've never stopped using it. Along with pen and ink, it's my favorite medium. I'm not sure why I bother with colour, as I really like monochrome drawings.
So what's GRAPHITE? It's the soft, black, crystalline form of carbon. I'm no clever-clogs I had to look that up.
It's believed that Simonio and Lyndiana Bernacotti first made a graphite pencil in 1560. But it was Nicholas Jacques Conte, a scientist in Napoleon's army, who invented the modern pencil in 1795. He used a mix of clay and graphite rods encased in wood to manufacture pencils commercially. By varying the clay and graphite mix he invented the hard H pencils, and the softer B pencils. The softer the pencil the more graphite is left on the paper. So all the H, HB, 2B and 4B pencils etc, are down to Conte. His process is still widely used to make pencils.
But long before this, mankind was industriously cobbling together what we MIGHT call pencils. This is the earliest known drawing. It was made on the flat side of a rock and the artist used some kind of carbon based medium. So there were boffins back then...73,000 YEARS AGO!!
In medieval times, some artists used soft tubes of lead wrapped in string and rags...like this...
...this is probably why we say we have lead in our pencils. It's known they used bread as an eraser, hence the slice of wholemeal in the picture.
Individuals were knocking up their own pencils long before Conte got in on the act. This is the oldest known pencil that we would recognise as such, it dates from1630. It was found in the roof space of an ancient timbered building.
It's believed that a carpenter made it for himself and dropped it when working on the roof.
I bet he said a few cor-blimeys when he got home and discovered he'd lost it.
The idea of this thread is to show pencil drawings, and the other forms of graphite that I don't know about. Charcoal isn't the same as graphite, but they are both carbon based products. So let's include charcoal drawings. (Coloured pencils aren't made with graphite or carbon, they are wax and oil based...so let's exclude coloured pencils, that's another thread).
I'll be showing drawings I've found online and in books, but to start I'm beginning here with some premium grade graphite wielders RIGHT HERE on POL. Hope they don't mind, but the drawings were posted for all to see and they are well worth a second look.
A drawing can be anything from a sketch done in minutes to a more finished drawing taking many hours. They can all be quite wonderful.
Above - Alan Bickley-carbon pencil. I was particularly taken with this sketch, look at those assured lines, that only come from years of practice. Framed it would look great on anyone's wall. A delight.
Above: Meg by Russell Edwards-pencil. Look at the subtle tones on the face, the fabulous hair, he's not drawn a line on the outer edge of her hand...no need to...but I would have in my clunky way. Just breathtaking!
Above: Denise Cat- charcoal. A gorgeously subtly shaded drawing. Terrific.
Above: Mike Stevens - 2B pencil: I love cars. I can't fail to enjoy this wonderful drawing.
Gudrun Stahl Sharpley - pencil. Gudrun has given us a line drawing, very little shading. Very expressive. I love it.
John Graham Inkson- pencil. Look at the stretching in this drawing, you can almost hear her groaning with effort.
Robert Jones - pencil- acrylic wash. I draw cartoons, often you are trying to convey at lot with a few lines. Robert has done that here. The dog is crammed with personality. Just love it.
Paul (Dixie) Dean - pencil. Everything is a subject. This is a beauty, very well drawn indeed.
Andrew Lucas-St Andrew's Church - pencil. I don't draw architecture. But how could I not be impressed with this?
Marjorie Firth - pencil. A super drawing, full of life.
Carolyn Parkinson - water soluble graphite. That's a new one to me. Wonderful work.
Alice Hole- graphite and carbon. A wondrous piece of work.
Peter Collins - pencil. Great treatment of the fabric, an intent gaze. Love it.
So just a taster. More from these artists and other POL artists. Then I'll get onto drawings I've found elsewhere. If you have some favorite graphite art, yours or other artists, please post them. If you don't want to say anything, don't bother, just post the image. That alone will indicate that you admire the work.
I'm going to finish now, suffering from writer's elbow, typist's bottom and spatulated decibels of the wossnames, time to pack this in...for now. I'll post some more somewhen.
In medieval times, some artists used soft tubes of lead wrapped in string and rags...like this...
...this is probably why we say we have lead in our pencils. It's known they used bread as an eraser, hence the slice of wholemeal in the picture.
Individuals were knocking up their own pencils long before Conte got in on the act. This is the oldest known pencil that we would recognise as such, it dates from1630. It was found in the roof space of an ancient timbered building.
It's believed that a carpenter made it for himself and dropped it when working on the roof.
I bet he said a few cor-blimeys when he got home and discovered he'd lost it.
The idea of this thread is to show pencil drawings, and the other forms of graphite that I don't know about. Charcoal isn't the same as graphite, but they are both carbon based products. So let's include charcoal drawings. (Coloured pencils aren't made with graphite or carbon, they are wax and oil based...so let's exclude coloured pencils, that's another thread).
I'll be showing drawings I've found online and in books, but to start I'm beginning here with some premium grade graphite wielders RIGHT HERE on POL. Hope they don't mind, but the drawings were posted for all to see and they are well worth a second look.
A drawing can be anything from a sketch done in minutes to a more finished drawing taking many hours. They can all be quite wonderful.
Above - Alan Bickley-carbon pencil. I was particularly taken with this sketch, look at those assured lines, that only come from years of practice. Framed it would look great on anyone's wall. A delight.
Above: Meg by Russell Edwards-pencil. Look at the subtle tones on the face, the fabulous hair, he's not drawn a line on the outer edge of her hand...no need to...but I would have in my clunky way. Just breathtaking!
Above: Denise Cat- charcoal. A gorgeously subtly shaded drawing. Terrific.
Above: Mike Stevens - 2B pencil: I love cars. I can't fail to enjoy this wonderful drawing.
Gudrun Stahl Sharpley - pencil. Gudrun has given us a line drawing, very little shading. Very expressive. I love it.
John Graham Inkson- pencil. Look at the stretching in this drawing, you can almost hear her groaning with effort.
Robert Jones - pencil- acrylic wash. I draw cartoons, often you are trying to convey at lot with a few lines. Robert has done that here. The dog is crammed with personality. Just love it.
Paul (Dixie) Dean - pencil. Everything is a subject. This is a beauty, very well drawn indeed.
Andrew Lucas-St Andrew's Church - pencil. I don't draw architecture. But how could I not be impressed with this?
Marjorie Firth - pencil. A super drawing, full of life.
Carolyn Parkinson - water soluble graphite. That's a new one to me. Wonderful work.
Alice Hole- graphite and carbon. A wondrous piece of work.
Peter Collins - pencil. Great treatment of the fabric, an intent gaze. Love it.
So just a taster. More from these artists and other POL artists. Then I'll get onto drawings I've found elsewhere. If you have some favorite graphite art, yours or other artists, please post them. If you don't want to say anything, don't bother, just post the image. That alone will indicate that you admire the work.
I'm going to finish now, suffering from writer's elbow, typist's bottom and spatulated decibels of the wossnames, time to pack this in...for now. I'll post some more somewhen.
Edited
by Lewis Cooper
Posted
The humble pencil, much ignored, taken for granted and often not even considered an artist tool , but what an impact it’s had on art and artists throughout history. I will definitely search out some of my old drawings, I did are more than I do now and will look up some I like on the internet and right here on POL . Thanks for starting this thread Lew , hope it leads to more people shaping their pencils and sharing.
Posted
Great thread Lew…
In my opinion a much underrated medium.
All too often these days, new students to art don’t want to put in the hours of hard labour necessary, but ignore this discipline at your peril!
Royal Academicians would spend years drawing from casts etc… albeit I’m not necessarily advocating that… we have moved on!
It’s colour that they want to work with, but colour is secondary…learn your tonal values first!
Drawing, with any implement, be it a carbon pencil as shown in Lew’s example of my Hastings trawler, or any of the many dozens of mark-making tools that are now readily available, form the backbone of good art.
Some excellent examples on show here…
Posted
Thanks for resurrecting my cartoon, Lew (Oh goody - another birthday... was the title) and placing it in such distinguished company. An old medium probably not much used now is Silverpoint - I keep meaning to get the equipment, but then - I keep meaning to do lots of things that never happen. Still available, though.
In my time I've used carbon pencil, Mars Lumograph and Derwent pencils, the old reliable Staedtlers and Rowney pencils, charcoal pencil, Nitram charcoal, willow charcoal, conté crayon; clutch pencils; and I agree with all here - there's not much you can't do with a small range of pencils, and maybe a bit of graphite powder, with an eraser/putty rubber. My pet rat loved pencils, too - I have a heavily nibbled Black Beauty pencil to prove it; his artistic side was less evident.... and this was long ago; I've moved beyond rats, and I wish the one trying to scrabble through this old house would move on, too.......
Posted
I really do love charcoal and graphite artwork Lewis. It's great to see everyone's wonderful drawings in these mediums. I agree with Alan, it's definitely underestimated as a medium. You can create subtle tones and transitions. You can use many tools to apply the medium and move it about. You can create a sketch very quickly, you can work fast but then on the other hand, hours upon hours can be spent on rendering and refining a more detailed piece. There is a harshness to charcoal visually in comparison to graphite. Both, you can get the lightest lights and the darkest darks to create depth and contrast, from a personal view, graphite has a more gentle delivery. Drawing is one of the basics but the most important tool in art. My son last week. Graphite.
Edited
by Denise Cat
Posted
Majorie: That young lad has such a great expression. He wears the cake smudges with pride, the look says ‘any more cake’. I doubt you’d get all that from a photo. Just terrific, and I know you’ve many more in your gallery.
Tessa: That kite is a beautiful drawing, and you’ve positioned it so well…he’s flying ‘into’ space.
Denise: I admired that drawing when you posted. Drawings such as these carry so much more humanity than a photo.
You’re all confirming why I love such drawings.
All hail the wondrous graphite.