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What Media & Medium Do I Use?
When I began drawing I had no idea there were any specialized pencils. It wasn't until I was in the 7th grade that I learned that there was a difference between pencils labelled H, HB, and B.
I can't tell you when I began drawing. I do know that what drawing I did was with crayons and plain old pencils - you know, the kind you find on the floors at school or church. When I was older, my mother let me use the pastels she had. I do remember doing a Christmas drawing (probably 24" X 36") of Bambi with a ribbon and bow around his neck. I think Mom still has that drawing!
When I went through school in Lampasas, the only ART that was offered was during the 7th and 8th grades. These classes I took. I don't remember learning much about art per se. We just sat down and drew. I can't remember learning anything about theory, color, or technique.
I drew small pictures for my classmates during the rest of school in Lampasas. I only used pencil. I liked it. It was forgiving. I could correct my mistakes fairly easily, and I could get some really subtle changes of value. It wasn't until I moved to Kennewick, WA, in 1981, that I started experimenting with the "other" types and kinds of lead for my drawing. I have learned through the years that it doesn't make a hoot what the brand, or hardness, or softness is! It's all about the FEEL of the lead moving across the paper or board.
I used my favorite pencil down to a nub; and, do you know where I got it? I found it on the ground outside of the National Guard Armory in Lampasas when I was still a teenager. I used it to create the velvet antlers on the Whitetail in Velvet. It was just a plain #2 pencil that the National Guard was passing out, but it had the greatest feeling lead I have ever run across. I wish I had a case of them!
I have used many different weights of paper and board. I choose the ground (artist's technical term for what you're going to work on) depending on the subject and what it is that I'm trying to convey. For a rough look I have used mat board. See The African (elephant) to see what I mean. I used the tooth and surface pattern of the board to provide the wrinkles and rough skin of the elephant. On the other hand, for the Whitetail in Velvet, I used a smooth paper so I could control how the velvet appeared.
It's just lately that I've begun using the flat-lead or carpenter's pencils. They come in varying hardnesses; but, the best thing about them is that they are so similar to a pallet knife. I love the inability to do fine, detailed work with these pencils. That forces me to be looser. And there is a certain continuity between my gesture drawings and the final piece.
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