Online Charcoal drawing Class/Workshop using Zoom App

“Drawing is the ‘bones’ of art. You have to be able to walk before you can run.” Dion Archibald

 Charcoal is probably one of the oldest art materials and is very versatile in nature as a medium. It helps an artist do quick drawings in expressive strokes and the final black and white artwork is so impressive that one easily gets addicted to it. I am one of them. I took to this medium about twenty years back and I continue to be fascinated by it. Some of the advantages of this medium which I feel I need to share with the viewers are as following-

• Great help in creating tonal value drawings
• Helps simplify a complicated scene
• The bold, sweeping strokes helps an artist develop his/ her unique style
• Being a dry medium, it is easy to make corrections 
• Very Economical
• Can be carried easily for outdoor/ plein air works
• It is a fast medium to work with ( Especially if one is doing preliminary study works )

Before the COVID lockdown, I was busy taking private workshops at my studio at home. However now I have started “Online Charcoal drawing and sketching workshop” using ZOOM app. 

Apart from teaching the basics involved in creating a charcoal artwork, I shall also demonstrate step by step, one of the charcoal drawings as shown below. It will be a very interactive session wherein I shall be answering all the queries pertaining to this medium and will also share my personal tips and techniques which I have developed over a period of time. If you wish to attend my charcoal workshop in a group or one on one basis, mail me at manjupanchal5@gmail.com or call me at 91- 9082690127

Some of the basic tools that I shall be using during my demonstration 

for creating the charcoal sketch 

A . Soft piece of cloth used for blending purpose

B. Kneaded Eraser

C.Tortillon ( blending tool )

D. Charcoal powder

E. General very soft charcoal pencil

F. Camlin soft charcoal pencil

G. Willow charcoal 

Most of the above mentioned materials are easily available on online stationery stores like AMAZON, 

KDS art store, Hindustan Trading Company, Creative Hands etc.

CLICK HERE to read in detail about the charcoal tools as I have already created a post in the past.

Follow my latest works and techniques on INSTAGRAM , where in I post my latest artworks regularly. 

Charcoal workshop at Dr D Y Patil College of Architecture ( Nerul )

Art workshop at College

Dr D Y Patil College of Architecture is an institution dedicated to D. Y. Patil Group's mission of imparting modern updated education. It was established in 1992, is recognized by AICTE and affiliated to the University of Mumbai.The institute has made its name in a short period of time. The main emphasis is given to integrating science and technology for the development of student's aptitude towards architecture. The college has excellent infrastructure. Academic excellence is ensured by experienced faculties and facilitated by art facilities.

Dr D. Y. Patil College of Architecture

Dr D. Y. Patil College of Architecture

On the 28th of Deccember I was invited to do a Two hours Charcoal Workshop with forty students who had registered their names for the same as a part of the ongoing Student's annual festival "SRUJAN" Students Annual Festival.

I normally take my Art workshop over a period of two days in which I teach about the tools, techniques and do several demo's. ( Total of six hours ). Therefore to complete the "Basics of charcoal workshop" in a two hour period was a challenge and I had to plan and work on it. For me it is important to teach, discuss and then help the participants in creating a few works as a warm up exercise.

Prior to the workshop I had sent a list of topics which I had planned to cover during the workshop such as the following

• Use of drawing tools
• Design and composition 
• Significance of values
• Blending and shading
• Making a mark using pencils and willow charcoal
• Techniques involved in creating grass, clouds, sky, rocks, mountains, sea, waves, bushes, trees, foliage, door, wall etc
• Creating an original painting
• Advantages of regular practice
• Use of fixatives
• Framing of paintings
• Care and preservation

During the workshop I discussed in detail about the tools that I use as an artist to create the Charcoal drawings. ( I have blogged about it earlier with images ). Today there are umpteenth variety of tools available in the market but one has to be selective and decide to use only those which work for his/her kind of work.

 In order to have a better understanding of all the above mentioned topics I demonstrated in bits and pieces ( Different elements such as foliage, door, bushes, door etc ) and the participants followed the same exercise in their drawing sheets. This helped them to get to know their tools for charcoal medium.

Using willow charcoal for mark making

( Similar explation was done for using

charcoal pencil as well as charcoal powder )

After getting accustomed to the charcoal tools like the pencil, willow charcoal and the charcoal powder I showed them one of my recent demo works and we discussed the steps involved in creating it.

A demo work that I recently created during

 a charcoal workshop ( Photo reference Courtesy: Geotripper )

In the last hour I started a Charcoal drawing using a photograph as a reference ( Maya Bay ) explaining the steps involved in creating the same. The participants worked along with me and they too created the same work in their Art Book which comprised of cartridge sheets.

As the drawing progressed there was a lot of discussion about the do's and don'ts in charcoal medium and exchange of ideas. I emphasized a lot on creating "Original Drawings" using still life subjects or personal photographs as a reference.

Charcoal drawing and sketching demo

in forty five minutes

To understand the value study, techniques

involved in creating sky, clouds, mountains and rocks,

water and waves.

The workshop went pretty well and I was satisfied as I could cover all the topics as I had planned earlier. It was a great pleasure to share my techniques and style with students of Architecture and I am sure this medium will be of great benefit to them in their future work.

The staff and students were very cordial and I was touched by the hospitality extended to me.

Looking forward to more such workshops in the year 2017.

Thanks to everyone who has been browsing through my blog on a regular basis and please do visit my DEVIANTART gallery and my FACEBOOK page.

Ending my post with a beautiful and inspiring quote

"Drawing is a vision on paper." Andrew Loomis

The Limestone cliffs of Phi Phi Leh

The plan was to complete my soft pastel painting of "Niagara Falls" which I started a few days

back. However I changed my decision as I felt I needed a little more "Analyzing and Planning"

in order to handle certain elements in the painting.

Therefore I went ahead and completed another of my "Phi Phi Leh" series art work. I 

encountered this scene while touring the island in the Long Tail Boat. At one particular turn,

this scene was so amazingly beautiful that I immediately captured it on my mobile. 

The image quality on the mobile did not have much clarity but since I was there and had seen and 

observed it all, I applied my own interpretation and creativity to recreate this scene on Canson Mi 

Teintes paper. The sparkling aquamarine waters and the tall limestone cliffs added so much

beauty to the atmosphere.

The Limestone Cliffs

Soft Pastel painting on Canson paper

Size 6.5" X 8.5"

Before I started the above painting I created a small "Thumbnail sketch" Canson paper.

A thumbnail sketch works like a guideline to help me follow a particular colour pattern, 

the composition, form and shape etc. I do make changes as and when necessary. Creating a 

"Study work" before proceeding with the actual artwork has now become a habit with me and

it helps a lot as I rarely have to discard a painting midway.

Thumbnail sketch

Size 3.5" X 4.5"

Ending with some beautiful words on nature, 

"I felt my lungs inflate with the onrush of scenery - air, mountain, trees, people. I thought,
"This is what is to be happy."  Sylvia Plath. The Bell Jar       Courtesy buzzfeed.com

I get inspired by beautifully written quotes and thoughts so I share them on the blog. Some days
we are all self motivated and on other days we look for inspiration.

I am conducting a two days workshop in charcoal as well as soft pastel medium in the last week
of this month ie June 2016. To read more about it CLICK HERE.

Step by step - Charcoal sketching of a forest.

I recently conducted my Two days charcoal workshop. During the workshop I
demonstrated the steps involved or rather the technique that I use to create a forest
scene using the charcoal medium.

The reference for the Charcoal sketching came from a beautiful scene from Mahableshwar,
a hill station close to Mumbai city. I used Fabriano Academia paper to create this charcoal
work. I use different pencils, blending tools, erasers etc and will post about all of them
soon. Over a period of time ( I am using charcoal medium for more than fifteen years now )
I have experimented with many different papers and pencils. Presently I have my set way
of doing using certain brands but I am still open to trying out something new.

Forest path

Charcoal sketching on Fabriano Academia paper

Size 6.5" X 8.5"

While I was sketching this work, I remembered to take breaks in between and photograph

my work so I could write about my technique that I follow when I create a forest scene such

as this.

Steps involved in creating a forest

scene in charcoal medium

The steps I followed to create the Charcoal sketching can be seen as in the above 3 images.

The top image : I outlined the forest lightly using HB pencil and filled in the tonal values, 

                           also adding a few tree trunks, branches and the pathway.

The middle image : In the second image, I completed the background hills and rocks, keeping

                                 the values light as it is at a distance. Then I worked on the middle ground

                                 adding details, shadows, foliage, tree trunk etc. 

The last image :  In the final image , I added the details in middle ground and foreground. Using

                            eraser I created some individual leaves and branches, and highlights where ever

                            required.

Charcoal medium continues to be one of my favorite mediums. I have been working with

charcoal for a long time now and every time I use it I get inspired. Art workshops therefore

are events that I look forward to because I get to meet passionate artists who feel the same

about this medium as me. Moreover I get a little break from my routine work that I am doing.

Presently my soft pastel painting on "Gulfoss waterfall" is in progress. This is my second

painting on the waterfall and I am going ahead in a pretty organised manner in order to

get better results as compared to the last one.                            

My recent Two days Charcoal workshop

Last few months have been busy with water colour medium. But when I got a call from a group of three who wanted to learn the Basics of Charcoal medium, I could not resist. Charcoal medium is one of my favorites till today and I can sit with my work for hours without getting saturated.

Of course it breaks the rhythm that gets set in with a particular medium, but nevertheless it provides an opportunity for me to meet new people who stay around my area and I know that in future too I will have people with whom I can interact for my art related work. Workshops bring like minded people together. We share the same passion and can discuss art endlessly, our past experience, our goals in future and a lot more. Every art workshop is a surprise package. I teach the techniques but while I teach, I learn too.

The first day of the workshop normally goes in discussing the papers, tools, and techniques used to create the different elements of nature be it rocks, grass, tree or bushes. This is then followed by demonstration of a seascape and a mountainscape. The participants on the first day just about get the hang of using the pencil, creating strokes, blending and scumbling. Then they create two small works on two different papers to know for themselves how charcoal works on each of them. By second day they get pretty used to the medium so I ask them what would they like to create.

This time the unanimous choice was my Coorg forest scene with a pathway. I demonstrated the step by step technique that I follow to create the scene in charcoal. My demonstration work was partly incomplete which I completed later and it can be seen as below.

The pathway

Charcoal painting on Canson C a grain paper

Size 6" X 8"

The works by the three participants is as given below. I encourage them to create the strokes as comfortable to them. Be it creating the leaves using a kneaded eraser or creating long grass using pencil strokes. By the end of the workshop I make them realise that each work turns out a little different as it is done by a different person and every individual finally has his/her way of doing things. This individual way of creating things will finally make them do their work in their own style. So it is important to learn the basic techniques but with time and practise each person's work should start looking different in the way that it has been created. 

I was happy with all three works and it gives me more pleasure to know that the participants who have never handled charcoal before create a forest scene on the second day and are so charged up to create more works as guided by me. I normally tell everyone in ANY workshop that they attend TO TRY AND CREATE ONE SMALL SKETCHING OR PAINTING EVERYDAY.  It works. It has worked for me and many other artists that I know who have been painting everyday.

Charcoal sketchings created by participants

during a Two days charcoal workshop

All are sized 6" X 8"

So in all each participant does about three sketchings. Two small ( 5"X 7") 

on the first day and one  ( 6"X 8" ) on the second day. The group is always a small 

number as I am able to then give individual attention to each of them.

Apart from paintings and sketching I also use my creative ideas to create some ethnic home products which can be viewed on my other blog www.ethnikhomedecor.blogspot.in

If you like my works, do share them with friends.

Putting together some of the works done during CHARCOAL WORKSHOP

Images of few charcoal paintings done by participants who attended my recently held Charcoal Workshop. It has been TWO FUN FILLED days. 

Everytime there is a workshop I look forward to meeting new people. The bonding is instant as art has no language. I get to meet people of all age groups and it feels real good to see everyone doing a subject in such a different way. The individual technique evolves slowly. I show my way, but eventually each participant tries out in his/her way and the works then look different and IT SHOULD.

Those who are really passionate about art, stay connected even after the workshop is over and by regularly discussing art and ideas become a source of motivation for one another.

Collection of charcoal paintings done during 

Charcoal workshop

The charcoal workshop basically introduces the participants to the WORLD of charcoal paintings. They learn about the tools and papers used for charcoal sketchings. They get to see the demo works and then later themselves  four different painting on different subjects like rocks, mountains, seascape, still life etc.This way they get the feel of the medium. From here on all that they need to move on further is a lot of practice, patience and dedication.

"One painting a day would just do fine."

Busy and enjoying the CHARCOAL WORKSHOP

Art Workshops are fun. It forces me to take a break from my regular routine of creating my kind of works. I get to interact with new people, discover so much about their involvement with art and in general the atmosphere gets so charged up. 

This time I decided to choose some very different subject. A simple rock with different textures on it ( Was part of my balcony flower pot as a decoration piece until now when I decided to put it to paper using charcoals ) and a seashell which I had picked up from seashore some time back. As artists we have this habit of picking up objects which can later be part of a still life creation.

Posting below the images of my demo works using Conte charcoal pencil, blending tools, camel charcoal pencil and Chunky charcoal. The works of the participants will be put together after the workshop is over.

Two small charcoal works done anson

during the charcoal workshop on

Canson C a grain paper 

and

Fabriano Academia paper

Since both the above works are demo works I have not spent more than forty five minutes on each of them. Just worked on the values, the light and shadow effects, the depth and did not get into each and every detail. At times one has to take the decision to "STOP". If not the detailing and shading can go on and on for a pretty long time and overdoing can sometimes take the essence away.