Detlef Jumpertz

Having started with Charlie's eye we best move on and complete the rest of his eye socket and head. The key thing here is to gradually layer graphite and build up tone, this will prevent Charlie being too monochromatic. Readers may recall from previous entries that I like to rub graphite into the paper to apply a base - this time around it is no different. I took an absolutely filthy rag, impregnated with many previous charcoal rubbings, and slowly and gently applied a soft coating of graphite as to what will constitute the eye socket.

Now I use a kneadable eraser to remove graphite in the appropriate places where the eye well and eye ridges will be. From here, I use firstly 2B and then 4B pencils to start building up tone through layering, rubbing with the rag, layering again, and then using a torchon to blend. This process continues until we have something that starts to approach, at least in tone and definition, the cartilage-like wells and ridges of the eye socket. A lot of this is trial and error (I'm no bloody squid expert that's for sure), and while I do have a good reference photo to work off, Charlie deserves more than just being a mere facsimile.

Rest of face

The next step is to start working around the eye socket and completing Charlie's "face". I'm going to start moving up the paper to complete above his eye first - textbooks will tell you should work from the top left and gradually down and across the page, I can't stand for textbooks! Drawing is a lot about mood, and if I want to draw middleground first or whatever why should orthodoxy stop me!

Because the squid is being drawn in isolation sans any background, the outline will need to well defined to get a nice pop off the page. Hence, the top of the squid will be dark in tone and then lighten as we move down the page. Having said that I now resorted to 4B and 8B pencils to again build up tone as I wasn't getting enough definition. I work to about a micro distance from the outline, and then use an extremely sharp B pencil, pressed heavily into the paper, to sharply define the outline and then fill to the outline accordingly.

Now we can begin the underside of the eye right to the outline of the face. Again a similar process, rub, layer, rub some more, layer, and use torchon. The tricky part here is to get a nice gradation of tone under the eye from dark to light to dark (as we reach the underside of his face).

The curse of squid acne

Squid also do not have uniform skin tones, they have a speckled/splotchy skin, not dissimilar to markings on trout - I could leave them out (save myself some time) but I'd rather put them in to provide more reality to the drawing. Having applied the gradation of tone, the splotches are added using either 4B or 8B as appropriate, just a case of making small dot patterns. Highlights are added by using the eraser to lift off graphite around the individual splotch and or use a torchon to blend others into the skin.

Anyone familiar with aquatic creatures will also know that "scratch" marks often also exist on the faces of fish and the like. I added one of these as well. I'm happy with the progression - see the photos below as to where we started and where we've now come to. Now let's spray that face with fixative, and we can move onto the tentacles next time (lots of fiddly work ahead).