Portrait drawing using Cretacolour and Camlin graphite pencil

"Drawing is vision on paper." Andrew Loomis

Graphite is a part of every artist's toolbox. It's affordable and a commonly used medium, yet if used on its own, in the hands of a skillled artist, it can produce breathtaking works of art. The lead in graphite pencils is made from a natural rock that is mined. In fact graphite and diamonds are the only two forms of carbon polymers occurring in nature. ( Courtesy: Craftsy.com )

My today's post is another "Portrait study" that I have created using the graphite medium. Graphite pencils are available in different grades ranging from 9H to 9B. H stands for hardness and B for blackness. I have a big collection of different grade pencils but I prefer to use just a few of them. In the portrait as below I have used 2B and 4B Staedtler graphite pencils for the midtones. For the darker tones I have used 8B Cretacolour and 10B Camlin graphite pencils.

Portrait study 

Graphite/Pencil drawing on Strathmore Gray toned paper

Size 5"X 7"

It is very difficult to obtain true black colour using graphite pencil because when the paper gets saturated by several layers of graphite, it tends to give a glare. Therefore one can use charcoal as a final layer to create further darkness, however I have avoided using charcoal in the above work. For the highlights I have used Conte and Cretacolour white pastel pencil.

Like charcoal, pencil drawings too tend to smudge. Hence I cover it with a sheet of butter paper before storing it neatly in a folder. A question that I am frequently asked regarding my charcoal and pastel works is whether I use a fixative in the final stages of the artwork. I have a "Winsor and Newton" fixative with me but I rarely use it on my artworks. 

CLICK HERE to browse through some of my graphite drawings in my sketchbook.

Thanks a lot for browsing through my artworks.