EDAM Term 2 : Large Scale Drawing week 2

  The second week of Large Scale Drawing project  involved applying ink washes to the previous weeks charcoal drawing, disrupting the composition with addition of another A1 sheet of paper ( either whole or in parts ) and  working on again with ink, charcoal or other media . 

 Quite a transformation from the drawing below  to that above! 

 We started with very, very pale washes of ink , water with a splash of ink ,  thinking where the darks were , and about the marks on the surface, not what the object was. "Don't go too dark too soon"  was the constant reminder as the ink  washes were gradually darkened and  with the paper  getting wetter, the charcoal began to disperse into  the washes

 Then  a coffee break while the ink dried  and  time  to inset another A1 sheet of paper. I split  mine in 2  and placed one part at the bottom and 1 in the middle  and turned the top section of the drawing upside down. By this time it was enormous and I needed Tony's  height and help to put it back on the wall 

Then a return to using pale washes, gradually increasing in density , to link the elements  across the blank white sheets ( which of course didn't have all those layers of rubbed down charcoal drawings underneath so had a different quality) I needed to  make myself a long stick of paintbrushes joined together  with masking tape in order to reach the top areas! 

The drawings  were left to dry over lunch ( the heaters turned on full blast) , looking considerably paler  ( below) on our return . 

There was a wonderful  accumulation of ink splatters and drips on the walls and floors. Inspired,  I put a sheet of paper under mine to catch the marks! 

We had a good look at everybody's work and formed small groups to provide help and suggestions  on how to proceed ( it's often easier to look more critically at work other than your own, to see areas that are working and  those that might need attention) . The advice  given on mine was straightforward - turn it round!! it's amazing what a difference that made. 

Asked to respond to the marks and shapes, I struggled initially as I'm not very good at working from my imagination. At Tony's suggestion as there were so many lovely layers and marks, it didn't need that much more work doing to it, strengthening the darks in some areas and using careful drawing with charcoal to bring  definition and contrast, emphasising some of the dribbles and marks . I  didn't want to  climb on a chair to get to the top area so left that indistinct, concentrating on finding creatures and suggestions of strange objects within the areas I could reach ( ever the pragmatist!) 

Responding to the drawing itself rather than having fixed ideas  of  subject matter produced some amazing results ( reminding me of how  much I enjoyed Tony's ' Reading a Paint Surface' )  Who'd have thought that I could produce such a complex multi-layered drawing   using a toy fork lift truck as a starting point! I  can see or imagine all kinds of things when looking at this. 

It's also a revelation working so large ( and messily!) , not something to  do easily at home ( though I did do that quilt flicking in the garden …)