C ONT CRAYONS

HISTORY
In 1795, Nicolas-Jacques Cont perfected the quality and manufacturing of the colored leads used by Italian artists in the 14th centur y. Many artists and gr and master s have since used Cont Par is pastels because of the selection of pigments, lightfastness, and the exceptional brightness and purity of the colours.

PORTRAITS
PACKAGING
The "portr ait" assortments come in boxes of 12,and 24 colours. They are also available individually (6x6mm cr oss-section sticks) to widen or add to y our range.

D E P U I S

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LANDSCAPE
PACKAGING
The "landscape" assortments come in boxes of 12 and 24 colours. They are also available individually (sticks of 6x6mm cross-section) to widen or add to your range.

STILL LIFE
PACKAGING
The "still life" assortments come in boxes of 12, 24, and 48 colours. They are also a vailable individually (sticks of 6x6mm cr oss-section) to widen or add to your range.

S KETCHING
PACKAGING
The "sk etching cr ayons" come in boxes of 12 and 24 colors. They ar e also a vailable individuall y (sticks of 6x6mm cr oss-section) to widen or add to y our range.

CHARACTERISTICS

SPECIAL FEATURES

THE

Cont cr ayons with their 6x6mm cr oss-section of fer a r ange of 84 colours, 14 tones of which are specifically designed for sketching. The sketching range is composed of various reputable red, grey and blackish-brown tints, 3 gradations of b lack and w hite complete the r ange. These crayons are very soft to use and ar e manufactured using natural pigments (iron oxides, carbon black, titanium dioxide), clay (kaolin) and a binder (cellulose ether). They are then baked after being extruded and dried. The degree of baking varies the grade (hardness: H/softness: B) of the b lack and w hite cr ayons. Two special tints f or portr aits (rose and brown) were recently developed and enhance this "sk etching" range, a genuine artistic reference for all Artists. The colour range has a chart of 70 br ight and balanced colour s that make up various set assortments: landscape, portrait, and still life. All our Cont crayons are produced from a highly rigorous choice of pigments. The Cont crayons can be used in dif ferent ways: Using the "flat edge" of the pastel b y varying the pressure (the greater the pressure on the pastel, the denser will be the colour obtained) Holding the carre upright or slightly slanted, you can draw using the 8 angles at the end of the pastel (allowing you to sketch and structure the drawing) The supports: all types of gr ained papers (mainly semi-colored papers), canvas or various supports with unevenness. All our cr ayons are compatible with the other items of the r ange: soft pastel, pastel pencil, etc. Conserving y our cr eations r equires the use of a suitab le f ixative. We recommend that y ou fr ame your dr awings (under glass) b y placing a thin strip between the subject and the glass.

With the Cont crayons, you will obtain a f ine, accurate line. Their har dness enables y ou to cr eate the angles of a face, the hair or the f olds of an item of clothing.

S KETCHING BOX

SPECIAL FEATURES

The Cont crayons enable you to draw very accurate lines.You can objectively produce the outline of a tr ee, the faade of a house or the ar chitecture of a monument.

SPECIAL FEATURES

With the "still lif e" Cont cr ayons, you obtain the accur acy needed to produce the ellipses of a glass or pitcher or the perfectly drawn faces of an octagonal vase.

COMPOSITION

12 sk etching cr ayons, 6 sk etching pencils (sanguine, spia, white, pierre noire 3B, charcoal 2B, graphite HB), 1 eraser, 2 tortillons.

USE
The hardness of the Cont crayons enables you to structure your drawing with ease dur ing the phase of pastel construction (sk etching with the edge). You apply layers of colour one after the other b y using the side of the Cont crayons. Final colour s can onl y be obtained after super posing the pr eparatory tones (dark colours). You will then use the br ight colours. These colours blend in with the other layers giving a wide variety of colours and contrasts.

USE

GENERAL USE

SPECIAL FEATURES

USE

The secret to a successful pastel portr ait lies in superposing successive layers until a dense and luminous layer of colours is obtained (the textur e of the pa per is almost entirely covered). The basic colour s are used to mak e the preparatory la yers, and then the f lesh and light colour s allow you to obtain a judiciously contrasted face.

All of the "sk etching" Cont crayons are designed to be used freely and spontaneously in r ough sk etches. The "sketching" c rayons enable you to pr oduce accur ate and liv ely w ork using the edges of the sticks. Artists can work using the flat edge of the pastel to cr eate the values.

USE

This larger assortment enables you to vary the expression of the lines. It is freer with the cr ayons, and more detailed and accur ate with the sk etching pencils. The pencils ar e particular ly suitab le f or f ine and delicate work on sk etches and r ough sketches, especially small f ormat, travel diaries and sketching pads.

You should pa y special attention w hen sketching the still lif e, without worrying initiall y about the r ealism of the colour s. Superposing the other layers will give sufficient density of colour to remodel the ellipses. The basic colours : sepia, black, iron red, are used to create the sub-layers, then the reds of a tomato, the green of an a pple will be super posed on the preparatory work.

METHOD

OUR ADVICE

USE

METHOD

Use the black or sepia pastel to sk etch the portrait and lightly touch the darker areas of the face : nose shadows, eyebrows, upper lip. Apply the reddish brown and purple to the entire area of the face or even a touch of blue, then shade off with your fingers. Then add yellow ochre for the most luminous ar eas: cheekbones, tip of the nose, forehead, chin, etc. Shade off again. In this intermediate phase, it is interesting to use the black so as to lightly restructure the drawing that has been blurred during the shading off. Finish with the light r ose, naples yellow and white of the finishing touches.

Those who enjoy sketching will appreciate the high pigment content of the "sketching" crayons which offer a vast range of possibilities. You can use downstr okes and upstrokes to obtain a spontaneous ef fect for thumbnail sketches. For short poses : using a single colour is r ecommended (iron red or sepia). For a mor e elaborate finish when laying longer r ough sketches, use the full potential of the range by superposing the crayons one after the other: sepia, iron red, then restructure with the white and the black to finish. Shade off regularly with the f ingers to soften the tr ansitions from shadow to light.

The pencils and the "sketching" crayons can be blended with ease, so do not hesitate to mix them. There is a detailed instruction leaflet describing how to use the sketching pencils.

METHOD
Create a brief sketch to lay the main areas of colour. It is essential to create the flat areas of the sky and ground, first of all. Next, create the more defined shapes of the landscape (trees, characters, architectural groups, etc.) Use black and sepia to cr eate the sk etch while slightly emphasizing the mor e contrasted areas of your subject. For the ground : Choose the dar ker colours in the assortment (some colour s are only available in the 24 or 48 pastel assortments) :umber, ultramarine, oxide green, yellow ochre then shade of f using y our fingers. Finish off using the lighter colours. For the sky : We recommend colours that hint at a stor my sky : ultra marine, dark violet, dark green, sepia, red purple. Finish by shading off using your fingers, and lighten b y using the most luminous colour s of the assortment to finish your creation.

Do not hesitate to use the sepia cr ayon for your sketch. If the ellipses of a pitcher or plate ar e not perfect, be aware that subsequent phases enable you to restructure them by shading off. Create the shadow cast by objects by using the black and the volumes by using the sepia, and iron red. Next, superpose the br ighter and mor e luminous colours, e.g. a red purple and vermilion red for a tomato, a vermilion red and orange yellow for a peach. Next, gently shade of f using y our fingers. The colours will naturally shade b y b lending with the sub-la yers. You finish b y adding touches of light on the object b y using the chair Naples yel, low and white.

OUR ADVICE

OUR ADVICE

OUR ADVICE

PACKAGING

The crayons are available individually or in assortment boxes (12, 24, or 48 colours).

It is pr eferable to use bottle gr een or Bor deaux pa per (these colour s emphasise the luminosity of a pastel). A suitab le f ixative should be used for protecting your drawing.

The flexibility of the "sk etching" crayons means that the y can be used on all supports: brown paper, sketchpad, colored paper, canvas, etc.

Use coloured paper instead of white paper (the colour of y our pastels will be more luminous).

Ref. : 500397 5