Fun with charcoal

[JLW11Hi]

I think I'll try a couple of different surfaces...and see which looks the best.

I haven't been working with charcoal very long, actually. I recently took a charcoal drawing class back in June. We met once a week for about 6 weeks, and it was pretty interesting and fun. I had never done charcoal before, but I caught on pretty fast. I'm glad I took the class because of that. Charcoal is fun to work with!

I'm actually currently working on a drawing a friend of mine asked me to do of Jimi Hendrix. Its comming along a lot faster than expected actually...Hendrix just seems to have a perfect face for drawing!

He also wants me to do a picture of Jerry Garcia and Stevie Ray Vaughan...though I'm not sure which medium I want to do them in. I might do one in ink or something, just for something different, and I might do a painting of one of them...I'm not much of a painter, though...I'm not very good with color schemes...

As for the oil painting, we did have quite a few class fees for using that stuff. We actually ended up using oils for most of the semester, and did 3 paintings with them. It was really fun, because I had never used oils before and I think my paintings turned out pretty good, as did a lot of my classmates. And, of course, we got to do a painting off of a Bob Ross video tape. Gotta love Bob!
I havent used oils since...though I am taking a few art classes in college where we might use them...

::eats hot dog and slurpie::

Mmm...Thanks!

 

[Maria]

Jerry Garcia! Please, if you do, post it here... I want to see it... :animwink:
While I was in Orlando, a friend of mine got hit by a car because he got distracted looking at a guy who looked just like him (according to my friend) driving a truck passing by. (He was on the pedestrian crossing, anyways, but that´s a whole other story).
He told me that on the way to the hospital -ambulance came and all, no big injuries, thank God- and I had no clue who J.G. was. Since he couldn´t believe I was so lost, he told the doctor and he goes "You don´t know who Jerry Garcia is???????????!" while he rolled up his sleeve and shows us a HUGE tattoo of Grateful Dead on his arm!!! Of all the people in Celebration´s Hospital! :lol:
We couldn´t believe it, we had such a big laugh! It´s been almost 4 years now, and I laugh everytime I remember that scene!

[/end of drift] :animwink:

 

[celticdog]

Here is some my experiences.

1. Fixative by 3M is a great product for sealing any type of drawing (chalk, pastels, charcoal, etc.) Use multiple coats instead of one thick coat. If the Fixative saturates the paper it could distort the drawing. Also, if it's too thick it could cause the image to run. You Know, dribbles. Fixative can be found at most craft stores for around $12 a can.

2. Newsprint is fine for casual sketches, however it doesn't have a very long lifespan. You'll want to find a good cardstock that is acid free. That way you won't end up with any discoloration, especially if the sun could touch it.

3. Turpentine tends to be more powerful than mineral spirits. Yes, both are petroleum distilates, however, turpentine seems to disolve paints and stains much easier.

I hope this helps. Have fun and good luck.

 

[Dizknee_Phreek]

Originally posted by celticdog
3. Turpentine tends to be more powerful than mineral spirits. Yes, both are petroleum distilates, however, turpentine seems to disolve paints and stains much easier.

oooohhhh! i didn't know they were two different things! all we had in high school was mineral spirits. thanks for that, celticdog!