Got this from naturalpigments.com, where i bought my new silverpoint tip and ground.
But i thought it would be nice to post up. I might do a pictorial when i actually do this and put it up here
To prepare grounds for metalpoint drawing technique, you will need a rigid support. Select a heavy, smooth-surfaced paper, paperboard, and parchment or wood panel, such as plywood or hardboard. Papers with a rough texture or smooth glossy surface are both undesirable for use in metalpoint drawing. Wood panels should be well-sanded and smooth, since any roughness will show through the ground.
If you are using paper as the support, wet it thoroughly and tape it immediately to a drawing board, heavy plywood board or similar surface that you would use to stretch watercolor paper. Let the paper dry before applying the first coat of the ground. Since absorbent supports tend to warp after applying several coats of the ground, it is best tack parchment and paperboard along their edges to a heavy board, and thin sheets of plywood or hardboard may need to be coated on both sides with glue size to reduce absorbency and minimize warping.
To prepare the metalpoint ground place a measure of tap water in a metal container and gradually add to the water an equal amount by volume of Traditional Silverpoint Ground. Stir the mixture until smooth and allow it to stand for about 30 minutes. Heat the container over a stove or electric burner until the mixture is warm but not scalding hot. It should have the consistency of cream and is now ready to apply.
For tinted grounds, add the selected colors to the ground mixture while it is being warmed. Only a few drops of Rublev Colours Aqueous Pigment Dispersions are needed to tint the ground. In all cases, colors should be added in very small amounts for two reasons. Many pigments due to their physical properties hinder the effectiveness of metalpoint on the ground, so increasing the amount will diminish the quality of the strokes. As the amount of color added to the ground is increased, the contrast between the ground and the metalpoint strokes will likewise decrease. Add color to a sufficient amount of the ground to apply several coats on the number of boards you want to have the same tint.
With a wide brush, preferably a soft-hair brush about an inch wide, apply the coats to the substrate. Apply each coat first in one direction followed by another laid perpendicularly in the other direction. Let each coat set before applying the next coat. To achieve a smooth ground, apply three or four very thin coats of the ground mixture rather than load the brush and apply one or two heavy coats.
To smooth the ground, lightly burnish the completely dry ground with fine steel wool (#0000), fine grit wet-dry sandpaper (1000 or P1000) or a lightly damp cloth folded to make a wide pad. If you use steel wool or sandpaper, it is advisable to pass the damp cloth over the surface to remove any dust.
Another Silver point drawing. This time a new model to me, a great model named Laurie that is brand new to the area.
I've been filling this sketchbook with silverpoint drawings in an attempt to understand metalpoint. So far so good, no erasing. You really learn cross hatching this way, but im starting to branch of a little in my pen and ink sketches.
Natural pigments was sopposed to have sent me 2 silver points, but i still have not gotten them. hmmm
Silver Point of Laura from the Sunday drawing group. Laura is an insanely great model. I wish she lived closer to rockville. She didnt budge from the pose, extremely professional!
What im learning from silverpoint is that you cant get too dark too soon, and you have to definatly learn to not put pressure on the silverpoint, you can get almost invisible marks on the paper. I plan on trying different silver point grounds, and even toning the paper with some watercolor and coffee to see the results.
I took the photo with a camera, but the drawing is much lighter. Its very difficult to photograph silverpoint because the silver reflects light.
Lunch time drawing in arlington. This guy apparently has good hot dogs according to matt. But i counted only about 5 people who got anything from there during lunch. The guy must be hurting, go get a dog from this guy. Its the corner of ft myer and 19th street, opposeite of the choupi creme stand.
I havent updated the blog lately. But i been working on a few things. Alot of ball point drawings and silver point drawings. I will get back into the habit of adding things on here. Im also working on a replica of Carpeaux the spirit of the dance. Wish me luck. Read 0 Comments... >>
I did some coverage of CPAC10 for townhall.com, so i did some sketches while manning the streaming feed.
Mike Pence.. some guy. Was speaking at cpac. Kind of boring
(Above) That girl on the lower left corner never took her arms and paws off her bf next to her. So i called her the insecure girlfriend. She sat there for hours.
after the first day, i headed over to arlington for my class
This was my view most of the time. You can see the speaker to the right hand side. But everyone just stood up and blocked my view. This drawing was done when the lizard lady Ann Coulter was speaking. These republicanos really love her, which is awfully frightening. They really didtn enjoy any intellectual talk, but rather prefer the angry and patriotic speeches. There was about a thousand references to their zombie Ronald Reagan.
I stayed for the ronald reagan banquet, which was neat because they had a george bush inpersonator, that was pretty good! The dinner was 175$, and i didnt get any food. But the other townhall people did becaause they were at the table. Next time ill ask the waiters to bring me food, but i dont feel like i can because im working and nothing is for free.
This lade was one of the last speakers. Irish or scotish accent, nutty as hell. She spoke about how avatar was a metaphor for conservatives and liberals. Liberals were the navii, and the conservatives were the americans taking over the natives. She really sounded like a fool, but she managed to be at the last cpac as well. She said that james cameron was an idiot, and asked people to not watch this movie because it was basically an endorsement for liberalism. And said that digging for energy was good, and she got a big applause after she made fun of liberals saying there was "too many people, but not enough elephants" ..
Sat down in my car. Its kind of rare for me to drive in, but with a chance of snow i took the car in. Sat in the car.. it felt good to draw get my mind off the impending house foreclosure and being broke. I guess i should be lucky to have a job. Things only look worse for me.
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