152 Advanced | TECHNIQUES
Using charcoal
CONTRASTING TONAL QUALITIES WITH COLOR
Combining an expressive drawing tool such as charcoal with watercolor
adds different qualities to your paintings. Its uid nature lends itself to fast
sketches, and its tonal qualities are ideal for adding shadows and textures.
Filling a charcoal outline with watercolor suggests a graphic, illustrative
style, adding color effects that aren’t possible in charcoal alone.
Textural effects
Broken charcoal marks will add texture to a
painting, and this effect can be enhanced by
working on paper with a rough surface.
Apply a wash over the top so that both the
grain of the paper and the charcoal marks
become integrated with the painting.
Tonal effects
Charcoal lends itself to tonal studies,
from rich blacks to light smudges. Use it
to establish shadows, outlines, and tones:
either dry or wet the marks to smooth
and intensify them. Blend with water to
create a light wash, or lay color on top.
Combining media
Vine charcoal smudged
into the paper results in
a granulated effect when
light washes are applied
on top. White gouache
adds accents of light.
Creating tone
Charcoal is easy to apply
and marks vary in intensity
according to how hard you
press. Use the different tones
for shadows and form.
Add color
Lay a relatively dry wash
over charcoal to create layers
of tone and texture. Use
more water to blend the
tones, if preferred.
Wet charcoal
Apply a little water to the
charcoal mark to smooth and
intensify the effect, creating
a velvety black with a unique,
matte texture.
Charcoal wash
For more varied marks, add
water to dissolve the charcoal
and move the wash with a
brush or let it bleed and
spread naturally.
US_152-153_Using_charcoal_2.indd 152 02/04/2020 3:34pm
153 Using charcoal
PUTTING IT INTO PRACTICE
This still life uses the contrasting textures of the
charcoal outline and the watercolor wash to imbue
the simple subject matter with color and immediacy.
Intense mixes of the liquid watercolors are used for
dark tones, blending the contrasting colors for mid
tones and highlights.
You will need
Shoes still life
Liquid watercolors (colors above)
No. 8, no. 6, and no. 4 soft-hair round brushes
Mechanical drawing pencil
Charcoal pencils and willow sticks
8
1
/4 x 12 in (21 x 30 cm) cold press
140 lb (300 gsm) watercolor paper
Blue violet
Tyrian rose
Lemon yellow
Magenta
Willow
charcoal
Charcoal
pencil
Peach
Charcoal
Watercolor
1
Charcoal outlines
Draw light, simple outlines with a
mechanical pencil. Using charcoal with
different thicknesses, draw over the
underdrawing in a sketchy style, avoiding
smudges. Hold the charcoal with a loose
grip and don’t apply too much pressure.
2
Smooth charcoal
Moisten and smooth the outlines with
a small amount of water on your brush,
moving the charcoal wash to areas of
darker tone.
4
Blend shadows
Add shadows beneath the shoes with
smudged charcoal. Use a little water to
create a lighter tone wash around the
outside of the shape.
3
Fill with liquid color
Add liquid color in a mix of tones inside
the lines, with undiluted wash for darker
tones over the charcoal marks.
Different tones are
achieved with dry
and wet charcoal
Charcoal wash
for inner
shadows
When applying the color,
you don’t need to ll
the shape perfectly
US_152-153_Using_charcoal_2.indd 153 02/04/2020 3:34pm
..................Content has been hidden....................
You can't read the all page of ebook, please click here login for view all page.