MATERIALS
• 4B and 6B General’s charcoal pencils
• Sharp blade to scrape a fine point on pencils (keep shavings as they are excellent for rubbing into large, dark areas on future works)
• Kneadable eraser, great for moulding into a fine edge for cleaning details
• Arches paper, although I’ll draw on anything that suits the subject
Charcoal or pen and ink portraits probably work to my strengths,sometimes combining the two works well. My satisfaction with commissioned portraits is countered by the ‘will they like it?’ anxiety. In this case, the anxiety was heightened by the tight time frame and the fact that the three photos were each around 20 years apart. Two of the brothers were deceased, so the drawing would have a greater emotional impact as well.
Not having met any of the brothers increases the difficulty, so I made sure the client gave me every available photo; photos can lie!
STEP ONE
After selecting the best photos to work with and that would work well together, I drew up a very rough layout to get the balance right. It made sense to have the earliest brother at the rear, building to the current brother in the foreground. It also seemed logical to make each brother slightly larger than the previous.
Once I was happy with the layout I scanned in the photos, printing each one out the size I had sketched. Because I hadn’t the luxury of time to re-do the picture if it wasn’t right (three faces means three chances of getting proportions wrong), I very lightly drew the bare outlines over a lightbox using the photocopies.
The eyes are always the most important part to get right, that’s what gives the face life. Conversely, I just hint at the teeth as you don’t want them to stand out.
STEP TWO
Starting top left, using a 4b charcoal pencil, I erased a small section at a time, replacing it very lightly with a 6b charcoal pencil. I had several pieces of scrap paper to make sure I left no sweat marks on the artwork (not that I’m a profuse sweater). Once satisfied the proportions were correct, I started shading in, again very lightly, remembering to follow the contours of the face. I worked off the actual size printout and the small photograph. The photo was more of a strain on the eye, but it gave a little sharper detail.
I did originally have in mind a black background and darker shading of each face, as I think it adds more emotional depth. However, as I worked out where to finish the clothing, it just seemed to work better with a lot of white space.
STEP THREE
Once I was happy with the shapes (I see each segment as a shape as this helps to keep the accuracy), I worked my way over the drawing until satisfied with the depth, highlighting the main features, especially the eyes, a little more than the others.
STEP FOUR
Moving down to the older figure, the problem was to add enough shading to match the first figure, as the photo was overly bright. I needed to make sure the light was from the same direction for each brother.
STEP FIVE
The final brother was difficult as he was last remembered with a beard, so I added one in and tried to age him a little more. I also added shirts to two of the brothers to match in a little more with the first one.
FINAL STEP
Once satisfied with the result, I used the kneadable eraser to clean. Importantly, I use it to lighten the light areas and sharpen the dark edges. It makes all the difference to the finished product. Lastly, I spray my works with a fixative, with pastels throughout the process, but with charcoal, usually at completion.
ARTIST’S HINTS AND TIPS
• Have lots of reference books and photos on your favourite subjects
• Go with the grain, e.g. the curve of the skin, the fabric in
a shirt, the direction fur grows
• Use dark pencils with very soft pressure, not light pencils with firm pressure. I generally use 3-6b pencils for initial sketching and 6b for the details
• It’s the little touches at the end that finish a picture, sharpening with a kneadable eraser and a few fine strokes of the pencil
• I have a small sketch book handy, you never know when an idea will hit you, especially in the middle of the night
• Be willing to adapt, my pictures seldom work out how I first see them in my mind’s eye
• Offer to frame your clients work for them, as you and your framer would have a much better idea and a cheap frame greatly cheapens your artwork
