Textured and Colored Drawing Grounds

Applications & Techniques: Textured and Colored Drawing Grounds with Patti Brady, Director Working Artists Program Many of the gels, pastes, and even colors can be used to create varied textural grounds. The characteristics of the gel you choose will vary the absorbency, the grit (particulate matter) and slickness or hardness of your drawing surface. Gels and pastes can be used straight from the jar, or you can blend any color with the gel or paste to create tinted grounds. You can also use GAC 500 or other pouring mediums over a textural surface to create a smooth surface to draw on while retaining the look and variety of the texture. There are many effects that one can create by drawing on a uniquely prepared surface. Varying texture, color, value, and sheen will expand the possibilities of a repeated drawing motif. Here, I used the varied combinations of textured pastes and gels and color to enhance and multiply the small variations in my drawing of this fantastic dog. Any relatively stiff surface will work as a substrate for these applications; heavy paper, illustration board, panels, even cardboard. Below is a description of how each ground and drawing was created.

Fluid Micaceous Iron Oxide and Fluid Interference Green (Fine) This surface is created by combining two Fluid colors, Micaceous Iron Oxide and Interference Green (Fine). Micaceous Iron Oxide is a GOLDEN iridescent color made with larger particulate matter, giving the dried surface a tooth that is excellent for drawing. For this ground, add enough of the Fluid Interference Green (Fine) to the Fluid Micaceous Iron Oxide to create a rich, iridescent-flecked surface. Experiment with different proportions -- about one third Interference Green is a good place to start. Use a flat palette knife to spread the mixture. I used two pink (pale and dark) colored pencils for the drawing.
Light Molding Paste and Fluid Green Gold Light Molding Paste was mixed with Fluid Green Gold to create this ground. The Light Molding Paste adds an almost luminous quality to the Green Gold. I used a black charcoal pencil, with a very sharp point to draw with. The Light Molding Paste has a very soft surface. With slight pressure, you can push the lines deeply into the surface.
Coarse Alumina and Fluid Titan Buff Mix two colors, Coarse Alumina and Fluid Titan Buff, to create this surface. If this version seems too dark for your purposes, add more of the Titan Buff to lighten it up. Like Micaceous Iron Oxide, Coarse Alumina contains a coarse particulate that makes it an excellent drawing ground. This combination makes a very coarse, dark and gritty ground which requires deep contrasts to work well. I used two charcoal pencils, black and white. The ground eats the pencil point quickly so keep a sharpener handy, and fix with pastel fixative.
Fluid Cobalt Blue, Fluid Cobalt Teal, Fluid Titan Buff and Fine Pumice Gel This ground was created in two layers. The first basecoat is a mixture of Fluid Acrylics: Cobalt Blue, Cobalt Teal and Titan Buff. When this was dry, I applied a thin coat of Fine Pumice Gel on top. The pumice has a slightly grey quality which works well over the muted blue basecoat. This drawing ground has a fine, very subtle tooth, and worked well with color pencils (blue, black and white).
Fiber Paste and Heavy Body Terre Verte For this ground, I applied a ragged textured layer of Fiber Paste to my substrate with a palette knife. The dry Fiber Paste imparts a rough, watercolor paper-like surface. When dry, I added a wash of Heavy Body Terre Verte Hue thinned with water and let that dry. The drawing was done with a water soluble graphite pencil, and then blended with a wet watercolor brush to give a wash effect in the shadow areas of the drawing.
Coarse Molding Paste and Heavy Body Red Oxide The Coarse Molding Paste used here was tinted with Heavy Body Red Oxide to achieve this rusted pink hue. The Coarse Molding Paste has some translucency which adds depth to the layer. The texture has a great tooth and works well with color pencils (dark green and pink were used here). These were water soluble pencils. Note the washes in the shadow areas.
Clear Granular Gel, Fluid Quinacridrone / Nickel Azo Gold, Fluid Prussian Blue Hue, GAC 500 and Acrylic Ground for Pastels This complex surface was created in four layers over several days. I began with a layer of Clear Granular Gel. When that layer had dried, I applied a wash of Fluid Quinacridrone / Nickel Azo Gold and Fluid Prussian Blue Hue. Beginning with the Clear Granular Gel created a highly textured surface that is visually appealing but hard to draw on. To fill up the spaces between the large granular pieces, I poured a layer of GAC 500, a liquid acrylic polymer emulsion with leveling ability that forms a hard, glossy film. It took three pours of the GAC 500 to create a level surface, allowing each pour to dry completely before the next pour was applied. When the last layer was thoroughly dry, I applied a thin layer of Acrylic Ground for Pastels to re-create a tooth on the now very smooth, glass-like surface. I chose a blue color pencil for the drawing.
Coarse Alumina and Fluid Cobalt Blue This combination makes a very dark and quite gritty surface. I used white charcoal pencil for the drawing, and added a light wash of Fluid Titanium White around the edges of the dog shape.
Matte Fluid Diarylide Yellow and Acrylic Ground for Pastels with Fluid Vat Orange This ground was created with two layers, one with just color and a second with a tinted ground. I began this drawing with a layer of Matte Fluid Diarylide Yellow. Over that, I applied a thinned layer of Acrylic Ground for Pastels tinted with Fluid Vat Orange. For the drawing, I used several color pencils (light turquoise, yellow, and green).
Crackle Paste, Fluid Cobalt Teal and Heavy Body Historical Smalt Hue For this drawing, I applied Crackle Paste in different thicknesses. (Rigid supports are recommended for Crackle Paste.) Areas with a thin application will have subtle, small cracks when dry. Thicker areas will have larger cracks. I allowed the surface to dry overnight and then applied a wash of thinned Fluid Cobalt Teal and Heavy Body Historical Smalt Hue to the surface. The drawing was finished with a graphite and charcoal pencil.
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