Drawing Copper & Metals in Colored Pencil

My lesson this past week was to have my students draw objects in different metals; shiny silver, copper and iron. Most of my students in this session are new to colored pencil so it was not only a challenge for them but also for me.

I draw and understand which colors I choose and how I layer pencils but sometimes it can be difficult to verbalize to students. Everyone sees color and value/tone differently, new students don't always see every detail of the subject they are drawing and I often assist with the correct angle or perspective.

This was our fourth class in the series and this week one of my students said she is beginning to notice things she never noticed before. For instance, when she looked outside she noticed cast shadows from sunlight and moonlight. She also began to notice different colors and shades/tones of color. This excited me because I feel that I am succeeding in teaching not only to render subjects but to really study and see characteristics and relationships to surroundings.

 These photos are sketches I did for the class trying to simplify drawing metal. I chose the spoon as a quick study and (hopefully) easy way for my students to understand reflections and different values/tones in metal. I started with an outline and denoted shapes where the light was reflecting. My photo shows more white reflected areas than I was actually seeing.

Leaving the reflected highlights the white of the paper, I drew the different values using Prismacolor Warm Greys #30, #50, #70 and black. I shaded the spoon in gradual transitions from light to dark. I added some contour line on the edges of the spoon but careful not to outline whole shapes, just varying my pressure so lines are more prevalent in some areas and softer or fading away in others.

In my final drawing below, I burnished with a bristle brush to remove the texture of the paper and added a few more darks where needed.

Here are some examples of student work. I also let students choose the color of paper to work use for a background. I was so busy helping students achieve their goals that I only got three photos at the end of class. I was really pleased that each student chose a metal object that was challenging!