Attempt at charcoal still life one. I started out using the wrong thing – condensed charcoal which didn’t really blend or budge when erased. Learnt a few seconds later that it’s supposed to be used at the last stage to darken the deepest blacks. (Did not take a pic but might upload it sometime in the future)

So I flipped my paper around and this is attempt two.

I like working with charcoal. It’s a forgiving medium because no matter how dark you go, it’s easy to get those bright reflective spots again. I also enjoy how I don’t have to be super detailed with charcoal, because the nature of it makes everything look put together anyway.

I aim to improve on the clarity of each shape and background texture. The liquor bottle is also out of shape, with a fatter base than it should have. The ceramic vase in front of it is also not supposed to have such a fat base. I could also have put in more effort to make the background look like paper instead of blending out random strokes.

Side note: I think signing off your work is not pretentious, it adds that finishing touch that makes any mess look purposeful.

Till next class. 🙂