May I utilize a graphite pencil on canvas?
Or just don’t use pencil. Many artists sketch out the essence of the composition with thinned-down paint. I usually use gray tones or earth tones for layout. If they show through- so much the better. It’s a looser feel than trying to tightly hold to “color in the lines” pencil.
August 19, 2011 at 11:25 pm #1151750
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There are many who believe that graphite pencil is not appropriate for any sketching over which oil paint will be applied. They feel that graphite, by its molecular structure, rather insidiously migrates its way through the layer(s) of oil paint, to come into view at, or near the top of the painting, after years of aging. I’ve never been convinced of that theory, and I have some oil paintings that I actually gridded (in graphite pencil) on the canvas, itself, and if anything were going to show up after 20 years of aging, it would be a grid. It hasn’t, as yet, however since I don’t believe in tempting fate, just in case their premise may have a degree of validity, I always draw with charcoal, or charcoal pencils any time I plan to apply oil paint over the drawing. I do not use graphite pencils. Charcoal is very archival, and it dissolves into the paint, itself, as the paint is applied. The material of which charcoal is composed is not much different than the pigment in Ivory Black oil paint, and the slight contamination of the first application of paint by the charcoal can be overcome quite easily in those early stages of paint application. I always make sure that I cover all evidence of my sketch on the canavas with oil paint, no matter how many layers may be required to accomplish that. I am a “layerer” and a “glazer” anyway, so for me that is merely part of my routine operation.
wfmartin. My Blog “Creative Realism”.
https://williamfmartin.blogspot.com
August 20, 2011 at 12:25 am #1151759
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I use a pastel pencil, so far no problems with lines showing thru. David
David
August 20, 2011 at 12:40 am #1151752
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Check out some of Petars work http://petarmeseldzija.blogspot.com/ He always starts off his paintings with highly detailed graphite pencil drawings . I personally asked him if he ever had issues with pencil. His response was that when he does his underpainting, the graphite mixes in with the paint and just sort of disappears. And I’ve also used both graphite and colored pencil with no issues.
August 20, 2011 at 5:26 am #1151754
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I’ve never had any problems with pencil either.
The first layer of paint binds the pencil particles.
(The pencil will combine to an extent with the paint acting like pigment, so it is better to draw lightly. This is more exaggerated with charcoal.)
Ron
www.RonaldFrancis.com
August 20, 2011 at 4:00 pm #1151761
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I use charcoal and have never had a problem. It dissolves by the first wash-in.
August 21, 2011 at 5:20 am #1151760
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i use pencil but erase it to leave feint lines with practicaly no graphite left to bleed through !!
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August 21, 2011 at 5:57 am #1151758
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i recently went to the national portrait gallery in london and saw many paintings that the pencil had bleed thru , princess diana has one there and it is shocking to see the grid and outlines as plain as day
Using different surfaces with graphite pencils
You may be just starting out with graphite pencils and be wondering what surface to use, or you might already be using pencils but looking for other surfaces to test them out on. Most people start out by using some sort of cartridge paper or bond paper which is most typically found in drawing pads but there really are a myriad of options available. Which surface option you prefer to use will come down to ease of use and the style of drawing you are looking to achieve.
Personally, I am always looking to create a clean, crisp outline to my pencil drawings, whether this is using graphite or pastel pencils. This ‘look’ just suits my style because I have developed a very controlled drawing technique. If you have a looser way of working, you might prefer a more textured surface to work on, or maybe you would prefer to use a smoother surface to help tame your pencils marks!
In this short article, I have completed the same otter portrait on three different surfaces to show you what a huge difference surface texture can make to the finished drawing.
a) For the first portrait, I have used my firm favourite which is a 270gsm smooth white card, similar to the weight of a typical birthday card. There are a couple of makes which I use, one is Canford Card and the other, which I now use all the time, is Clairefontaine Maya card. Both makes of card are very similar and have almost the same range of colours to choose from. I have used white for this exercise.
You can see how much detail has been maintained in this pencil drawing and how crisp the lines are. All of these drawings were completed in the same way. The outline was first sketched with a 2H pencil, then I created the first layer of fur with the same 2H and the undercoat for the eyes. Next, I used a 2B pencil to deepen the fur layers and darken the eyes, ears, and mouth. Finally, I used a sharp 4B pencil to add more depth all over, but this was done slowly, in gradual layers. Pressing too hard with a 4B pencil will result in a shine on the surface and the inability to add more depth to that area. So although progress may feel a little slow, the results will be much more rewarding in the long run.
Personally, for the second option, I wouldn’t ever have considered using pencil on canvas. However, a client asked me to produce a commission of his dog in graphite on canvas, so being slightly intrigued I gave it a go and it worked!
So, now I had used canvas successfully with graphite pencils, I thought I would show you the same otter drawing produced on a stretched canvas. This surface is extremely rough, with many bumps and dips, making it very difficult to control the pencil as you are working. It does respond quite well to a kneadable putty rubber when lifting off unwanted pencil. However, you cannot rub with a standard rubber, as this smudges the graphite and leaves a dirty mark. Unfortunately, it is quite hard to get the depth to the coat on canvas, compared to card, as this surface starts to resist the graphite after a while.
This final study was produced on a cream coloured rough watercolour paper, which although not as textured as the canvas still had quite a rough surface. This paper accepts graphite pencil much more readily and more detail can be achieved by gradually building up slowly. Again, a putty rubber can be used to lift off excess pencil and an ordinary rubber will also work, as long as it is clean and used gently.
Do take some time to try out a few different surfaces before you settle on your favourite and have some fun in the process!
