We all know how important it is to use the right materials. The last thing we want to do is bite into a chocolate chip cookie only to find out that someone chose the wrong materials and instead used… raisins. Oh, the tragedy! It might still be a good cookie, but it doesn’t live up to its full potential of deliciousness. In a similar way, a work of art might turn out well, but it could be a much stronger piece with just the correct choice of materials. Let’s take a look at some aspects to consider when choosing materials!
Media
The first and most obvious element to consider is the choice of media. Will paint or pencil work better for this? Within paints, what about acrylics versus watercolors? Or if you want pencil, would graphite or charcoal pencils work better? The best advice I can give to choose the media wisely is to get to know your materials. Get a feel for how your paints work and the effects they create. Know your strengths and weaknesses with each medium. For example, if you want to create a highly detailed and accurate piece but have a hard time controlling watercolors, then perhaps acrylics would be a better choice. Even colored pencils could be a good option for creating a detailed, colored piece since they can be sharpened to a point. But if you are going for a looser piece, then by all means use the watercolors if you use them in that way.
Another aspect to consider is how well the medium blends or how smoothly you can shade with it. Since chalk pastels blend so thoroughly, for example, they work well for skin when doing portraits. On the other hand, if you are still working on creating blends and shading with paint like acrylics, the skin might not come out as smooth or full of depth with that medium. Even within the realm of black and white media, there is a big difference between pencil and pen when it comes to blending. With pen, it’s much harder and can be more time-consuming to create smooth gradations in values. It can create a powerful piece if pulled off well because of the strong contrast between the blacks and whites, but it is good to keep in mind the time needed for a piece with shading like that. I personally like to use graphite pencils paired with charcoal pencils, since the charcoal gives it that very dark shade for contrast, but it is much easier to shade with than a pen.
An all-graphite portrait versus a graphite and charcoal pencil portrait. Notice the difference in how bold the darkest parts are in each one and the difference in depth this creates.
Of course, there are endless options out there for media. Some to consider are acrylic paints, watercolors, oil paints, graphite, charcoal, pen, marker, oil pastels, chalk pastels, colored pencils, crayons, collage, digital, and more. There are also many more choices when you consider other visual arts like sculpture and ceramics where you have different types of clay or rock to choose from.
Here are some questions to consider when deciding on a medium:
- Am I going for a black and white or a colored piece?
- If creating a black and white piece, do I want a high contrast in values, and if so, what materials can go really dark and really light?
- If creating a color piece, do I want a more opaque or a more transparent look? How do different media layer?
- How much control does this medium give me? Do I want a lot of control or do I want a looser effect?
- How messy is it? Will it smudge a lot? Am I going for a smudged look?
- How much time will it take? Will it need to dry between layers if it’s a wet medium?
- Do I have the other materials necessary to use this media such as the right paper or brushes?
If you’re not sure about any of these questions, do a bit of experimenting with different media to see how it acts and what you can do with it. That should give you a better idea of whether or not it’s the right fit for your project. Feel free to ask questions in the comments as well!
Surface
This might not seem like that big of a choice, but it really can be. Paper might be the simplest and one of the most popular options, but what about canvas? What about various other surfaces like wood, cardboard, brown paper bags, or glass? The texture and color of these can all play a big part in your final product. For example, canvas takes a lot more paint to create a smooth texture than paper, since the texture of the canvas shows through thin layers of paint. On the other hand, canvases can hold a lot more paint than paper without just getting heavy or floppy. In other words, canvases can be sturdier.
Even within the realm of paper, there are many options. Smooth or textured paper? White or colored paper? When working with a medium like chalk pastels, the texture is especially important. Smooth paper doesn’t have much texture or “tooth,” which means that it can only hold so much pigment from the pastels before the rest starts to just fall off the surface. This doesn’t work well if you have to build up a lot of layers but only the first two stick. Textured paper, or paper with a “tooth”, works better for pastels since it allows you to create many more layers that actually stick. With wet media, the paper becomes especially important. Thin paper like copy paper easily tears when it gets wet, and it will at the very least get curled and bubbled up, which doesn’t make for a great finished product. Thick, sturdy paper meant for wet media is a better choice.
A practice piece I did on copy paper where the paper curled and made the painting gritty as the paper started to tear, vs. the final piece on thicker watercolor paper.
The color of the paper can also add a lot of interest to a piece. For example, working with white pastel or white gel pen on top of black paper can create great contrast with the strong black of the paper. It can also make a piece warmer or cooler. For example, I once made a play on proportions with a drawing of me standing in the bathroom and squeezing a giant tube of toothpaste onto my toothbrush. I worked with graphite and white charcoal on a blue piece of paper, which gave everything a blue mid-tone and gave it an overall cooler feel. On the other hand, I created a chalk pastel piece of peering through a seashell at a sunset, and I worked on orange paper to give it a warmer, orange undertone wherever the paper peeked through.
Working on black, blue, and orange paper with white charcoal, graphite & white charcoal, and chalk pastels.
Tools
Lastly, you need to figure out how you’ll apply some of these media, such as the paints. Brushes, palette knives, or fingers? Which one will create the texture or detail you want? For example, fingers might be great when you aren’t aiming for a precise piece. Palette knives might be good for laying on thick globs of paint. Brushes will be good for adding details or filling in large areas. Make sure to choose the right size and shape brush for what you need. You don’t want to end up filling in a huge area with a tiny paintbrush when you could save a lot of time by just using a larger brush. The shape is important for the type of brushstrokes that a brush creates. Some come to a point and are great for details while some are flatter and work well for filling in spaces.
Other tools to consider are erasers and blending tools. Kneaded erasers can be very helpful for erasing precise areas or for just lightening a section. Blending tools can include blending stumps, your finger, a tissue, and a Q-tip, among others. Consider the size and precision for each of these and how large or small of an area you are trying to blend.
It is very important to consider all these materials when creating a piece to have the best results. Practice and experiment, and use what you learn to make wise choices. Have fun choosing and creating, and have a happy Thanksgiving!
Take a Step in Someone Else’s Shoes by Iris Woodall
“This was done with gouache paint and pencil. The materials in this were important because it really wouldn’t have the same effect using something different. The two materials used really complement each other and work well together. The black and white shoe pops against the colors of the letters. The use of soft and hard pencils (the softest pencil used was a 6b) helps to create shadows and show depth in the shoe.”
Visual Arts Submissions:
Next month’s topic is Observational Drawing. Send in artwork you’ve done from life, observing what’s there in front of you.
Submit a piece of your artwork that fits this theme for a chance to have your art featured as the cover photo. A couple more may be chosen to be included within the article. This will be a good way to both share your artwork with the clay community and provide some inspiration to other readers.
Please submit through this Google Form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd-rFWU-nF4TmCC65tqWVBNL-AE9N2FkklsOcnecjBB8XiQwA/viewform?usp=sf_link
The submission deadline is December 23rd. Let me know in the comments section if you have any questions, and I’m excited to see your artwork!
Cover Photo:
Chromatic Creation by Ella Bougher
Photo Credits:
Author unless otherwise noted