Sunday, October 18, 2015

Drawing with smoke

Thanks to my friend, Jill Ehlert, who mentioned drawing with smoke to me, I,ve been experimenting with smoke drawing. I,ve devised an easy way to prop my paper above me so that I can lie on my back under the paper, candle in hand, and draw with the smoke it produces.
If anyone else should try this, wear protective goggles or glasses so hot wax won,t fall in your eyes. It also helps to have something around the candle to catch dripping wax. I,ve used a 4 1/2" foil dish. The dish does obstruct the view of the smoke but It saves hot wax from dripping on you and on your clothes. I plan to get a clear plastic bowl to use as a holder in future which I think will help the view to a certain degree. I found that I had to hold the candle about an inch or two from the paper. Make sure there are no breezes or drafts in the room while you are working with candle smoke. Even a slight draft will blow the smoke away from the paper.
Most importantly, be careful of the hot wax and the possibility of fire!