Materials + Care

Most work will last best when treated like any other work on paper or painted surface:

Avoid prolonged direct sunlight.

Avoid excessive heat, moisture, and rapid changes in temperature or humidity.

Avoid pressing anything directly against the surface of a drawing or painting.

Handle works on paper by their edges when possible.

Keep food, liquids, household cleaners, and sprays away from the surface.

If framing under glass or acrylic, the artwork should generally be separated from the glazing with a mat or spacer so the surface does not touch it.

If a work has an unusual surface or requires different handling, I’ll note that with the work.

Wax-based materials can produce dense, physical marks that sit partly on the surface rather than disappearing into the paper.

They may remain somewhat sensitive to pressure, rubbing, and heat. Avoid placing anything directly against the drawing surface.

Some of these works receive a protective finish and some do not. The finish used, when applicable, is documented with the work.

One of the things I like about wax-based materials is the way they catch light differently depending on the thickness and direction of a mark.

Water-soluble wax pastel can behave like several different materials depending on how it is used.

Dry, it can leave dense waxy marks that sit visibly on the surface. With water, those marks can dissolve, spread, stain, or partially disappear into the paper.

Even after drying, some passages may retain a waxy surface and can remain sensitive to rubbing, pressure, heat, or moisture.

Avoid touching the image area directly. Keep the work away from excessive heat and moisture, and avoid placing the surface directly against glazing.

Some of these works receive a protective finish and some do not. Any finish used is documented with the work.

I like the material because it can move back and forth between drawing and painting without fully becoming either one. A hard line can suddenly become a wash, while other marks remain sitting visibly on top of the paper.

Oil pastel never behaves exactly like dry drawing material or fully cured oil paint.

Depending on the brand, application, surface, and finish, the material may remain relatively soft or pressure-sensitive. Avoid touching the image area and avoid exposing the work to excessive heat.

When framed, I prefer that the surface have breathing room rather than being pressed directly against glazing.

Oil pastel can produce extremely saturated, heavy marks without requiring much physical thickness. I like the contradiction between how immediate the material feels and how substantial the finished mark can look.

Some works receive a hand-applied wax finish.

Wax changes the surface physically as well as visually. It can deepen values, alter sheen, and make certain marks appear more integrated with the support.

A waxed surface should not be scrubbed or cleaned with solvents or household cleaners. Avoid excessive heat and prolonged direct sunlight.

Minor differences in sheen are part of a hand-worked wax surface rather than a defect.

Graphite can range from pale matte gray to extremely dark, reflective marks depending on pressure and density.

Dense graphite can become polished or shiny where it is heavily worked. That changing reflection is part of the material.

Graphite can also smudge if rubbed, particularly when heavily deposited. Avoid direct surface contact.

Charcoal is one of the most physically delicate materials I use.

Loose charcoal particles can move or transfer if the surface is rubbed. Some charcoal works are fixed and some are intentionally left less altered by fixative.

When fixative or another protective finish has been used, it is documented with the work.

Charcoal has a depth and softness that is difficult to reproduce with most other black drawing materials, which is part of why I keep returning to it.

Conté and similar dry materials sit somewhere between drawing and painting for me.

Depending on the material and support, they can remain vulnerable to rubbing in much the same way as charcoal or soft pastel.

These works should be handled carefully and kept from direct contact with glazing or other surfaces whenever possible.

Colored pencil can produce everything from very light, dry marks to dense areas of wax or oil-based pigment depending on the pencil and how heavily it is applied.

Heavily worked areas can develop a smoother or more reflective surface, while lighter passages remain visibly connected to the texture of the paper.

Avoid rubbing the surface or placing it directly against glazing. Prolonged direct sunlight should also be avoided, particularly because lightfastness can vary between pigments, brands, and individual colors.

When I use colored pencil, I’m often interested in the mark itself rather than trying to completely blend it away—the direction, repetition, pressure, and buildup of individual lines remain visible in the finished work.

Mixed-media work is exactly that: several material systems occupying the same object.

Sometimes those materials behave differently from one another.

When I combine unfamiliar materials, I document what I used and continue watching how the combination behaves. Those experiments are part of the larger practice.

If a particular work needs unusual handling, display, or storage, that information will accompany the work.

This page will change as I learn more.

I’m interested not only in how materials look while I’m using them, but how they react to paper, pressure, water, wax, fixatives, varnishes, light, handling, and time.

Some observations become permanent parts of my process. Others turn out to be wrong.

The record is part of the work too.