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Charcoal sketches - order of completion

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Helen Davies

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Hi, In my quest to sketch outside at least once a week over the summer when my art class isn't running, I was at Waverley Abbey this morning trying to do a charcoal sketch. However I wasn't sure what order I should doing things. I have been taught that I shouldn't complete one area of the drawing ahead of everything else, and should keep all parts at roughly the same level of finish. However with charcoal I couldn't do that without masses of smudging so I ended up finishing from the right (I'm a leftie) each section before I started the next. What is the advice for a newbie on best practice for charcoal in a sketch book outside.

Sylvia Evans

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Dont do it...... Use something like a very soft pencil anything between 6B and 9B, you can still get lovely darks and soft lines without all the hassle of smudging. Sketching with charcoal is a nightmare especially outside. If you still want to have a go , why not try covering a page with charcoal BEFORE you go out smoothly and rub it over with a soft rag. Then when you are sketching use a soft putty rubber and draw with it into the charcoal covered page. Or take fixative and fix at every stage....Best of luck. Oh and your tutors advice working your drawing across the page and not one small bit is very good..

Derek Snowdon

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The right advice above, good luck
With Sarah, Phil, Ellen, Rose the dentist, and the granddaughter whose name I forget.

Robert Jones, Napa

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I wouldn't take charcoal out in the field, for the reasons given. A far better instrument would be a Mars Lumograph 8B pencil: soft, but waxy - so you don't get the smudging or the unattractive shine you'd get with most other 8B pencils. Or you could try one of the harder conté crayons, not the very soft ones; or a mid-grade carbon pencil, such as those made by Wolff's. Anything but charcoal, basically! Great medium for indoors, and I rather like the charcoal pencils, which many don't, but out in the fresh air the dust just gets blown away and you can't help smudging it. As to not finishing part of the drawing before the rest of it, well .... I suspect in reality that many of us will make that mistake, it depends in large measure on what you're actually working on. In practice, your hand will probably fly all over the paper, and is bound to stop and work on some parts of the drawing more than others. Just don't forget to take your pen-knife, craft-knife, or pencil sharpener. http://www.isleofwightlandscapes.net http://www.wightpaint.blogspot.co.uk

Helen Davies

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Thank you - I'll try with the really soft pencils.

Helen Davies

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Hi, When looking for the pencils suggested I saw that there are charcoal pencils, are they any use for sketching?

Ruth Dolan

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Hi Helen. Yes I think so. I have a set of charcoal pencils, quite like them because you can vary your line and depth and smudge for tone. A bit messy though, but smooth to work quickly with. Best for line drawing really when you want a quick impression. I don't think I would invest in them again though, they do lack sharpness of line for detail. I prefer a wide range of pencil grades.

Sylvia Evans

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You could use them. They are still messy, make sure you take fixative. If you are sketching in a book the pages will get VERY smudged. I like my pens and then a watercolour wash...but thats a whole new ball game .

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by NorthLight

With Sarah, Phil, Ellen, Rose the dentist, and the granddaughter whose name I forget.

Robert Jones, Napa

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The pencils I suggested were Mars Lumograph, made by Staedtler. They are not charcoal pencils - they're a form of graphite (hence the "graph" part of the name). Charcoal pencils are an alternative, made by all sorts of companies, and in different grades. If you chose one of the harder ones, say the Rexel Derwent Medium grade, you could probably get on with it, but I'd still prefer the one I suggested. Clutch pencils - a bit like the old propelling pencils, but with a wider range and thickness of leads - are also good. Now who's telling you that Mars Lumograph are charcoal? Point me to the culprit! http://www.isleofwightlandscapes.net http://www.wightpaint.blogspot.co.uk
With Sarah, Phil, Ellen, Rose the dentist, and the granddaughter whose name I forget.

Robert Jones, Napa

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Here's a (very bad - I've just taken it, it rotten light) photo of a Mars Lumograph 8B pencil. As you can see, not charcoal. This is what I recommend.
With Sarah, Phil, Ellen, Rose the dentist, and the granddaughter whose name I forget.

Robert Jones, Napa

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Ah. Sounds as if you've been on Amazon - they specialize in the "customers who bought this item also bought super-strength knicker-elastic"; I often wonder who the Hell cares what other customers bought.... More and more companies seem to be doing this - I suppose it can be moderately helpful, but I do find it annoying. Anyway, I use all sorts of things when indoors - anything from carbon pencils to charcoal, crayon, even Chinagraph. What you need when you're outdoors though is a pencil that will make a strong mark, is also capable of faint marks, won't easily break, doesn't smudge, and is as happy on watercolour paper as it is on cartridge. And that's where my favourite pencil scores. If you prefer line work, of course, there are plenty of ink pens available now - often a useful alternative, or an add-on to your repertoire of materials. http://www.isleofwightlandscapes.net http://www.wightpaint,blogspot.co.uk

Alan Bickley

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Well Helen, I really enjoy drawing with charcoal, both in the studio and out and about. Yes, of course it can be a bit messy but I don't let trivialities like that deter me, the benefits for me anyway seem worth it. I find that charcoal allows me to draw with so much more freedom, I just love the feel of them and their density, usually opting to work on a decent quality A2 layout pad, anything smaller for me can be a problem. You must of course keep you arms etc from scrubbing over the paper as you draw, but a bit of care and practice will soon correct that. As with most of my drawing, I do tend to get the whole image drawn in first before moving on to blocking in the darkest areas, and then working on the rest of the drawing very loosely as is my style, your style may be completely different to mine, these are just simple guidelines. I have enclosed a photo of David Hockney working on a large charcoal from his car, this was one of many charcoal drawings that he completed for his exhibition at the RA in 2002 titled 'A Bigger Picture', you can see the angle of the board, this may be helpful to you, also have a look at his other charcoal drawings from this series, stunning stuff and inspirational, good luck.
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