Touch: creating rubbings and drawing texture | Art

Duration 30 minutes

Materials Paper of varying weight and colour, charcoal, chalk, graphite sticks

Subject A range of coarse surfaces and a selection of textured fabrics

What will I learn?

The idea is to develop a range of marks and textures that will get you thinking about the differences between physically touching objects and trying to draw an equivalent of a sensation of texture.

Method

1. Place a piece of paper directly on the surface you intend to take the rubbing from.

2. Use a stick of charcoal to build up a reasonable area of rubbed surface. Experiment with paper of varying weight. A very coarse surface might be revealed by quite a thick weight of paper, for example.

3. Similarly, try using various types of material (pencil, charcoal, graphite sticks). Changing the pressure of the mark can be a way of revealing more sensitive surfaces.

4. Now look at the textured fabrics. These are materials we are unable to take rubbings from, so try to create marks that respond to the pattern or weave of your fabrics. Find ways to represent the difference between fur, towel and tin foil, for example.

5. Use as many types of mark as you can to differentiate between surfaces.

What do the results show?

Unlikely objects can generate beautiful and surprising drawings that come from a physical, tactile experience. Compare the rubbings you’ve made and think about the aspects of pattern that have become visible. Examine their regularity, depth, angularity and rhythm. Now look at the textured fabrics you’ve drawn and compare the differences in the quality of marks produced. Keep your rubbings for a later exercise.