Friday 28 December 2007

3rd December

DP 337

The material and tools you use make a big difference to the way you draw. I've had very little success achieving fine controlled lines with a large brush pen like the Pentel Colour Brush that I used here. Of course, that might just be my hand - other artists may be able to coax fine detail out of this pen! But in my experience, you can get some fine lines but eventually the brush will blot and splodge because you're trying to use it in a way that isn't right for it: I've found that this particular tool works best when you drew quickly, lightly and with confidence.

If you fight what a drawing instrument wants to do, you'll just end up frustrated and cross (and possibly with a ruined tool). Of course, you should always experiment and push yourself and your materials but sometimes you have to recognise the essential nature of a medium. For example, despite the fact that I love charcoal as a drawing medium, it wasn't suited to this project at all. Even if I'd sprayed it with fixative, charcoal wouldn't have survived a trip through the post. Maybe I'll do a series of big charcoal drawings in January once the envelopes are finished: I'm certainly ready for a change of scale and medium now.


Posted: 11.54pm on 3.12.07
Returned: 6.12.07

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