Charcoal Drawing

Artist's Statement:

Jillian Wight

Andreson

Foundations of Art

January 13, 2020

The first step in creating my charcoal drawing was, of course, to choose an image. When this was assigned, we were approaching Christmas break, and so I chose to use a photo of my parents during their wedding. Although the project wasn’t finished until after Christmas, I found it very interesting to experiment with drawing the photo. After choosing our reference, the next step was to prepare the image. Using the “photos” app on my laptop, I edited the image to accent the highlights and shadows. Then, I printed the image and used a pencil and a ruler to create a 1-inch grid. After the image was ready, I selected a piece of paper on which to create my drawing. Because the entire piece would be in black and white, I chose a piece of green-toned paper, which served as the middle tone for the charcoal drawing. I loved the ending effect. The next step was to grid our papers. Because the images were printed on 8.5 by 11 size printer paper, we needed to scale the grid up a bit, so the squares we drew on the paper were 1.5 by 1.5 inches instead of 1 by 1 inch. After all of the preparation was completed, it was time to begin drawing with charcoal. Through this medium is much faster to work with than graphite (due to its softer consistency), the process still proved to be quite complicated. Although the grid was simply for scaling and referencing, I used a similar technique as that which we used to create our self-portraits. One square at a time, I filed the paper. To add as much detail as possible, I used a large, cylindrical piece of black, compressed charcoal for larger spaces and then added deal with the white charcoal pencils. To add details in black, such as on the face or hands, I used a piece of willow charcoal, or the square compressed black charcoal. I found that this variety led me to the best results possible. I experimented a lot towards the middle of my drawing in terms of the strategies I used to complete the piece. I tried drawing from the picture I’d printed, and then using one on a computer without a grid. I also experimented with the details in the drawing, trying my best to highlight the figures by leaving out details that were unimportant and muddled the background, and concentrating most of the white on their clothes and faces. I would say that my project evolved from a very flat face towards the end to one with much more detail and interest as I began to add more values and shading.

In order to make my piece as successful as I believe it to be, I used many principles of design and elements of art. Shape was one predominant example. Because the background was very dark, I focused more on the basic shapes I could see present to form such items as the speaker and table, instead of trying to search for defining details. There was also a figure in the background of a man wearing a tie. Because there was a lack of any detail to his face, I focused on the shape of his hair and tie, and the differentiations I could see between tones. This brings me to the next element of art I utilized, value. Clearly, this was a key player in the charcoal piece, as there was no color available. Instead, the entire paper is filled with shades and tones of different values, which come together to represent an image. Value can be seen in the folds of the ceiling and curtains as well as the creases in the figures’ clothing. It is also the element behind the highlights that shape the faces and hands of each figure. Finally, form played a role in creating my final piece. It was the result of the value and shape that I added and is demonstrated in such areas as my mom’s arm and hand, my father’s face, and the shape of the space that they are in. It is the element that made it possible to convey the image that I hoped too, and is what ties the piece together. In terms of principles of design, the elements I used came together nicely to illustrate balance. The price is balanced because each shade can be seen in more than one area, causing the eye to travel across the surface of the paper. Although most of the white is concentrated around the figures, balance was achieved when I added white to the ceiling and floor, as well as when I accented the lightbulbs that decorated the space. Contrasts is also present. It is apparent in the ceiling and walls of the tent, where I pushed the shadows a bit, but the main role of contrast is the way that it is able to draw the eye towards the center. To create this effect, I created a much darker background to contrast with the white clothing the figures are wearing. Finally, emphasis was a key component in the creation of my artwork. While the entire image is important, the subject is truly the two figures. Using a combination of value, form, and contrast, I was able to emphasize the figures to draw the eye towards them. I think the reason this was effective was that the subjects were centered and a different value than the rest.

My work is based off of an image, and so is close to photo-realistic. Due to this, there is no deep “story” behind the choices I made. The ideas that are visually evident are simply those associated with marriage— happiness, joy, love, excitement. The project relates strongly to my life. It depicts my parent’s wedding, and so drawing it allowed me to notice details that connected me to the image. Because the image shows my family, it was a very interesting experience. In my work, I am most proud of the way I was able to create the folds in the clothes the figures were wearing. I loved the effect, and I think part of the reason it came out so nicely was that I was able to focus on what I saw, not what should be there. I struggled the most with the faces. I found that, while they didn’t look quite right, I was unable to step back to see what I needed to fix. I did the best I could, but now after looking at the drawing again, I can see that the heads are a little disproportionally large.

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