Clint Eastwood

Clint Eastwood. The piece that began my long love affair with charcoal, It was 2017 and I was taking my one foray into formal art practical education. It was a Drawing 101 course at a community college. My teacher was blunt and no-nonsense and i loved that class and I loved her. We did you standard light vs. dark studies, the vanishing point perspective drawing, and some painting with coffee. It was an awesome class. Our final project, and the last 4 weeks of classes, were to be dedicated to a high-contrast, black and white portrait done in charcoal. Many classmates chose family members or famous celebrities. I came across a reference photo of Clint Eastwood and I was mesmerized by the look in his eyes and the deep lines across his face. I loved it and I loved spending the next couple of weeks smearing charcoal across the paper with cotton balls and q-tips and my finger tips; it was messy and experimental and I loved every second. It was a piece on a scale I had never aspired to before and it pushed my limits to go darker and darker with the shadows. To this day, this drawing is my favorte piece of artwork I have ever created, and it is what sparked my love and dedication to charcoal as my medium of choice.