Grade 10 Art - Day Four

Drawing Technique - Colour Pencils

Today's discussion centred around the specific qualities and techniques of working with coloured pencils (pencil crayons). Here are the highlights of our discussion:

Colour pencils are unlike graphite pencils and should not be used in the same manner.
- that are transparent (think watercolour paint).
- you can layer the colours to create new hues.
- unmixed colours convey simplistic rawness, similar to oil paints
- because they are colour, you can vary tone and depth by pressure, layers, paper texture, etc.
- vary the way that you hold the colour pencil. Upright for precision; underhand for gestural strokes and large areas.
- they are forgiving (room for error and recovery).
- note that the colours you choose may convey mood.
- can be used on colour paper.
- can be layered over markers and ink.
- colour alone can build some of a structure's illusions.
- colour allows you to layer hatch marks or stippling over other colours for effect.
- you may use solvents such as water or turpentine to create wet technique.
- layering dark hues will allow colours to "read as black" ie.) blue + brown + purple.

Sgraffito
Lay down one colour, then lay down a second colour over it with some kind of hatching technique. Then take a razor blade and scrape across the coloured patch . It will remove portions of the top colour, allowing the bottom colour to show through.
source: www.elfwood.com




source: www.artistdaily.com

Burnishing
Applying lighter hues over darker hues creates the effect of light, metal, sparkling glass, etc.

Excerpts from: "The Colored Pencil" by Bet Borgeson