CHARCOAL TEXTURES

Charcoal is an effective medium for producing textures, as it both comes in many forms and is easy to manipulate. I wanted to share a few of my approaches with you, beginning with how to use additive and subtractive marks, and then turning to more experimental techniques using charcoal dust and acetone.

Typically, willow charcoal and charcoal powder lend themselves more readily to creating broad areas of tone and more atmospheric textures. They are the easiest forms of charcoal to smudge and “push” once on the paper. It is also easier to erase them, though you may never fully return to