Print this out and read at you leisure.

Derek's Hints and tips

 

 

How best to preserve charcoal and pastel drawings?

1.  Only draw on one side of the paper.  Stack your charcoal drawings carefully, one on top of the other.  Make certain that you never drag one out from a pile because this will smudge and ruin the picture. I keep mine in a paper folder with the year written on the spine of paper, and also details about the pictures such as the names of the models.

2.  With some special pictures and those in sketchbooks, cut acid-free tissue paper and position on top with a smallest amount of pva along one edge.  I cut a batch of A4 tissue paper for immediate use in my sketchbook.

3.  If you intend to frame your picture, spray it with fixative outside on a calm day.  Please do not use fixative inside the building.    Fixative does seem to dull pastel colours very slightly.

4.  For easy transport from the class, lightly roll the picture.  Unroll as soon as you get home and place on a flat surface so it can regain its flatness naturally.  Always store flat, never rolled!

 

More hints and tips here soon!

25th September 2006

http://www.cambridgelifedrawing.co.uk/