Working on a new drawing

{on the drawing board}

Hello,

Today I did not go to the NGA to work on the copy, instead today I stayed home working on a variety of loose end and I thought it would be nice to share with you a new graphite drawing that is still in progress.

This drawing was begun drawing from life, the roses have long since withered and faded, however I still think certain areas could be improved in value to strenghten the composition. So I am playing with it some, on Saturday I worked on some areas, darkening the values on some leaves and now it is leaning against a wall for me to observe it more to see if it needs anything else.

Here are a few close ups of the tools I am using. When drawing with graphite I prefer using lead holders and I only like using "Turqouise" brand lead, as it is the smoothest and most reliable level of hardness. I use 2H, HB, 2B, 4B, and 6B leads. This drawing is on handmade Twinrocker paper, Yale Wove Text weight. It is my first time using this paper, before I had been hesitant to pay almost $10.00 for a single sheet of paper, now I am converted, the texture of this paper is fantastic. The fibers are strong and durable, so you do not ruin the surface of the paper with erasing, even with a hard rubber eraser.

{detail of supplies}

I use two lead holders usually, one that always has a harder lead and one that has a softer lead, that way I can go back and forth without changing leads every few moments. I like to use a kneaded eraser for most of my eraser needs, however there are times when I need something more powerful and that is when I use the fine grained rubber erasers, this eraser paired with the eraser shield helps me localize a specific area. It can be a real life saver, especially when you accidentally drop the lead holder on your drawing and it leaves a big ugly mark!

When drawing with graphite I try to work left to right, top to bottom, to minimize smudging, however in the later stages of a drawing where I am reworking and refining areas I find having a sheet of glassine is helpful as it will not smudge the graphite.