Friday 1 February 2013

Check and Log: Using Texture

Have you discovered any new ways of using your drawing tools to depict surface and texture?

I have discovered that a chopstick dipped in ink can make an interesting drawing tool. I have also enjoyed the variety of marks that I am able to make with a dip pen. I've also employed a variety of scraping techniques. Scraping into roughly applied paint or into a base of pastel and then applying graphite on top. I also tried scraping into oil pastel and applying ink into the scraped areas.

How successful were you at implying form with little or no tonal hatching? 

This was more successful in objects with a definite shape such as the shell. On the log I did not use tonal hatching to suggest the roundness of it. I tried to make the fissures a bit closer together on the underside to suggest curvature but it didn't really work so it looks more like a flattened piece of bark. On the rock I have cheated a bit as there is some tonal variation to suggest the form.

What are you impressions of frottage as a drawing technique?

Although I really enjoyed playing with this technique I think it is quite a difficult technique to employ effectively. The reason is that when trying to give a texture to a surface, if the surface is curved it is difficult to use frottage as it is often not possible to change the direction of your marks to follow the contours of the surfaces. 
It works well in Jane Dixon's 'Platform' as this is a drawing of an architectural model which has straight planes. The textures she has chosen are of the right scale and in keeping with the feel of the model. 
Frottage might more easily be employed as part of a collage because it easier to be selective  as to which areas receive the texture in this way.

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