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Sunday, January 25, 2009

What a Difference Charcoal Makes!



Thought I'd share one of the things that I think makes an amazing difference in my paintings--charcoal. The top image is missing the footstool, the tree, Kelly's lips--and charcoal.

Regular matte medium gives enough tooth to use charcoal, as do matte paints (whether cheap or expensive). I usually smudge the charcoal with my fingers, although you can use a paper stump--amazingly enough, the two give totally different results! If you don't like your results, a damp cloth or baby wipe (my favorite) will completely remove the charcoal. If you like what you've done, a light coat of Krylon's Workable Fixative will set the charcoal and allow you to paint over it if you wish.

(Note: the first picture was taken with a camera in natural light, the second was scanned. This accounts for the glare on the first one.)

3 comments:

Lynn Cohen said...

You'd make an excellent art teacher Karen. I'd love to sit at your feet in your studio and learn from your storehouse of wisdom and knowledge.
These are terrific.

AscenderRisesAbove said...

I always do this as my last step too; what a difference it makes!

Leah said...

This piece has such depth to it. Love it!