What is graphite – Art Media Guide

I was recently asked the question re. my kookaburras drawing which is currently in progress “What is graphite?” which inspired me to add a new category to my site called Art Media Guide. Being an art teacher to Middle and Senior students for over twenty years now (eek!), I have certainly had plenty of exposure to a wide range of art materials so I thought that it might be helpful if I shared some of this with you.

Graphite came into widespread use during the 16th century, following the discovery of a large graphite deposit in Borrowdale, England. As the story goes, a passerby found bits of shiny, black graphite clinging to the roots of a fallen tree. The whole countryside was abuzz with talk about this mysterious mineral, which soon came to be known as “plumbagoⁱ” or, more commonly, “Blacklead.”

Graphite leaves a dark mark, making it ideal for use by writers and artists. But it was so soft and brittle that it required a holder. At first, sticks of graphite were wrapped in string. Later, the graphite was inserted into wooden sticks. These initial pencils actually used hand cut slivers of gaphite inserted into a rectangular shaped groove in the pencil barrel. The wood-cased pencil was born.

The variety of tones achievable with a range of graphite pencils from 9H to 9B. The higher the B number, the darker and usually softer the pencil. You can easily purchase a good selection in one box which gives you a nice set to work with in your drawings.

In 1795, a French chemist named Nicholas Jacques Conté patented a new process for making graphite pencil leads. This method mixed powdered graphite and clay in a water slurry, then formed sticks which were hardened in a kiln. These composite graphite-clay leads allowed for more efficient use of graphite and revolutionized the pencil industry. Not only did it reduce cost of the leads, but by adjusting the ratio of clay and graphite powder in the formula, the changing hardness of the lead allowed more control of the lightness and darkness of the graphite mark left on the paper.

Today’s graphite writing cores are a mixture of graphite and clay. By varying the ratio of graphite to clay, pencil makers can adjust the “hardness” of the writing core. The hardness of the graphite core is usually marked on the pencil with a number such as 2, 2-1/2 or 3 or letters such as HB, 2B, H or F.

There are also solid graphite pencils available and we use these at the school I teach in. They are quite luxurious and the solid graphite is lacquer coated which can be sharpened like a normal pencil.

The pencil below is a pure graphite hexagonal crayon which has a very fine mixture of ground graphite and clay – good for larger areas.

There is also graphite powder available which is what I use in my backgrounds and this powder is amazing. I brush it on and it is really like painting with graphite and it flows on to the page. It is fantastic for covering a large area quickly and losing the stark whiteness of the paper. Can be sealed using fixative to minimise smudging and for more permanency.

Other tools which can be used in graphite drawings are kneadable erasers or putty rubbers and paper stumps or torchons.

A kneadable eraser is soft and pliable, making it great for creating highlights in a drawing because you can shape the eraser into a fine point. It does not wear away and leave behind eraser residue. When my younger students see this for the first time they think it’s a big lump of blue tac.

These blending stumps or torchons are actually very good in achieving a nice, smooth blend and actually smooth out any rough marks you don’t want. The fine point makes them good for getting into tiny sections of the drawing.Probably no two artists work the same way and I generally prefer to just use the pencils and do all of my blending with them, building up the layers and intensity of tone as I go. As with every art medium, you have to experiment and see what works best for you.