SELF-PORTRAIT

One is certainly born an artist by chance, but only becomes one through hard work. Journey, aesthetic choices, techniques, this is who I am, stroke by stroke!

CHARACTER TRAITS

Self-taught

I have always had a very independent temperament. In university, I preferred to organize myself to study and review, which did not prevent me from passing all my exams on the first try.
This freedom of mind is my strength. In an artistic activity where one is daily called to surpass oneself, my will is my main asset. I am passionate.

Realism

I love realism. It is a demanding discipline, both technical and artistic, in which I find myself, particularly in my attention to the smallest detail. It is a form of challenge that motivates me to always go further in what I do.

Drawing the real, exploring everyday life in all its forms, in its true light without idealizing or modifying it.

Being as close as possible to human feelings and situations, that is my goal.

Because I love life, I love the world as it is before our eyes, and in its smallest details.

It is long-term work, of observation, research, and meticulousness. You need a very determined mindset to spend an hour rendering a mole!

MY MATERIAL

* Graphite pencils HB, 2B, 4B, 6B, 8B – Brands FABER CASTELL, STAEDTLER

* Powdered graphite – Brand CRETACOLOR

* Mechanical pencil HB and Bic criterion HB – Lead sizes 0.3, 0.5, and 0.7mm

* Blending stumps N°1, N°2, N°4, N°6, N°8 – Brands KOH I NOOR and STAEDTLER

* Kneaded eraser – Brand FABER CASTELL

* Brush N°8 Oval wash – Brand DALER ROWNEY GRADUATE

* MONO ZERO eraser

* Eraser pencil – Brand Faber Castell

* Knife eraser

* Sandpaper – Brand KOH I NOOR

* Drawing paper – Brands CANSON and CLAIREFONTAINE 160G – Raisin format

* Large format drawing paper rolls – Brand FABRIANO ACADEMIA

Want to know more about my technique, or even learn how to draw portraits yourself? Feel free to contact me.

PENCIL STROKES

The technique

I create portraits using graphite pencils on paper. When we talk about graphite lead, it is actually a mix of ceramic clay and carbon. The variations between these two components already allow for an infinite diversity of tones. If more clay is chosen, the stroke is finer, lighter. More graphite, and it becomes greasier and darker.

I then work with a whole palette of tools, ranging from the classic mechanical pencil to the kneaded eraser, my fingers, and a variety of blending stumps. I layer successive strokes, accentuating or softening them, to render the volumes, textures, and plays of light and shadow that shape a face. My goal is to achieve the most realistic result possible.

HOW I WORK

My method

Drawing is often associated with outlines and contours. However, my work is all about giving depth, volume, and contrast to bring out the expression of a face and the emotion attached to it.

To do this, I sit at my table, and for hours, I gradually bring my work to life, layer by layer, from a blank sheet of paper.

It is to focus on this aspect of portraiture that I have chosen, among all creative techniques, the rigor and finesse of graphite pencil drawing.