Charcoal Drawing Classes
Charcoal art is a type of visual art or drawing that uses “charcoal” which is a burnt organic material (such as wood). The material is usually made from willow wood. There are mainly two types of charcoal used by an artist to create art:
Vine Charcoal: This material is usually made of burnt wood and is not held by any kind of binder because of which they get smudged easily. They get spread on the surface effortlessly and are also easy to erase hence making them simpler to use but they do not last very long and get faded quickly.
Compressed Charcoal: This charcoal material is bound by wax or gum binder and is darker in color. They do not smudge easily and are harder to remove. As a result, they last longer and leave a darker mark. They may come in the form of a compressed round stick or a pencil. Compressed charcoal products are sometimes pigmented and come in white color.
Charcoal was a key element of art created thousands of years ago and was evident in cave paintings more than 28,000 years ago. It was widely used during the Renaissance but not many of them survived. Later, the paintings were bathed with gum to prevent the paintings from getting eroded or destroyed. Many famous painters in the west used charcoal primarily for sketching.
Tools that are required for charcoal painting or drawings are:
- Vine or compressed charcoal as per your preference.
- Paper- most common types are textured or coarse tooth papers like charcoal or watercolor papers are preferred. But, smooth-surfaced sheets such as bristol, newsprint, etc. might work as well.
- Kneaded eraser- a special type of eraser used especially for charcoal paintings.
- Blending Stumps- used for blending or smearing in your artwork.
- Paper towel to protect your art from getting smudged or damaged by your own hands.
Various techniques of charcoal art:
- The flat tone technique is used to create a flat-tone surface. The entire surface is crossed out using soft charcoal and then the page is smudged and merged into a single tone.
- The texture is created to depict areas like hair or grass. The effect is created over a flat tone surface by using sharp-edged tools and erasers. Strokes of white and dark charcoal are made and merged to create shaded areas and a finer texture.
- Gradient or graduated tone is created by drawing out two contrasting edges, one with soft coal and the other with chalk. After this, both sides are slightly smudged and merged.
Pro-tips to create your dream charcoal art:
- Know the types of charcoal and understand how to use them.
Always use a hobby knife to give that sharp edge to your charcoal sticks. - Using a rough surface or coarse paper always work well.
- Use stumps or tortillon to blend your charcoal work.
- Use paper towels or cotton gloves to prevent smudging as charcoal can get real messy.
- You can create highlights using erasers in drawing classes.
- Want some colors in your piece? You can always combine charcoal with colored pencils strokes or soft pastels to give it a dash of color.
- Charcoal paintings are susceptible to damage, protect them with glass frames.