[shazia juna]

I do like the NMA courses overall, and in conjunction with secondary resources (books) it is a very valuable learning platform. I came across some information on the nature and properties of paper and pencils given in the Fundamentals course, which I felt was inaccurate. So I sent two enquiries directly to the NMA team and have so recieved no reply, and it has now been over 3 weeks.

My suggestions are not going to be popular, but here they are:

1. Keeping this forum active for students who don’t wish to use social media (including Discord). Maybe offering one of the course tutors on a monthly basis to select some questions on the forum and offer their suggestons.
2.  More technical and historical aspects of art materials maybe added to the courses: for example, … the information regarding the paper surface in the Fundamentals course is inaccurate (making it clear that the major ingredient in both wood-pulp and cotton paper is Cellulose, the difference between the paper made from cotton is that cellulose fibres are longer than the cellulose polymer chains derived from wood. Yellowing or non-archival properties of paper is due to the presence of lignins.) I spent over 10 years of my life researching the nature of polysaccharides, so please NMA read my messages I sent over 3 weeks ago. But my point is there a lot of scope for developing the course content here.
3. Sustainability issues: choice of materials (environmentally friendly, or not), waste disposal, handling of pigments safely.
4. Recommended Reading lists for their respective courses for students who wish to delve deeper into the subject.

[shazia juna]

Just clarifying my first statement, in my previous post. The factors contributing to the Graphite shine are: 1. increased content of graphite in softer pencils (which Joshua Jacobo mentions in the video),  and 2. fat/oil content in the binder to facilitate the transfer of graphite particles on the paper surface. Both graphite content and the fat/oil increases with the softness of the pencil (higher B values).

Another point I want to make is that there are Sanguine Pitt Oil base pencils which are smoother than the Conte Sanguine pencil. The former smudges less. Both are nice to work with but have different qualities in terms of adhesion to the paper (in turn influencing the mark marking process) and reflectivity (sanguine Pitt is more shiny than the Conte Sanguine or a Pastell Sanguine).

I would have liked to see the value chart and a discussion of the Conte a Paris pencils particularly the Pierre Noire range. They are rarely discussed in instructional drawing books. But I have seen them being used in other NMA courses, and look forward to learning how to use them.

 

[shazia juna]

A comment on the graphite shine for the 3 value scale: One of the reasons that graphite pencil layers on paper have a “shine” is the presence of fat/oils in the binder. Fats or oils are added to facilitate the adhesion of graphite particles to the surface of the paper. I think there is a patent online by General pencils from the 1970s which shows a typical formulation of graphite pencil lead. I stumbled across this information when I was searching for vegan-friendly (and cruelty-free) graphite pencils. Majority of the pencil manufacturers tend to use tallow (animal-fat) in softer graphite  pencils (B and softer). Faber Castell is the only manufacturer I know of that uses synthetic oil in the graphite pencils, and are vegan-friendly. The softer the graphite pencil (ie higher the B value) the higher content of fat/oils. Generally, the amount of fat/oil content is directly proportional the softness value of the graphite pencil.

In water-soluble graphite pencils, the binder is gum arabic which isn’t as reflective. To understand this, I compared 8B pencils from the same manufacturer(s) one which was a normal (non-watersoluble) 8B pencil (contains oil in the binder) with a water-soluble 8B pencil (contains gum arabic in the binder). As expected, the area shaded with a  water-soluble 8B pencil was less reflective and less shiny than the area shaded with the non-watersoluble counterpart 8B graphite pencil. If anyone is interested in undertaking this study, it is important to acquire the water-soluble graphite pencil in the same grade (for example, compare 8B with another 8B water-soluble pencil) and they must be from the same manufacturer. I have a hand-held Near Infrared Spectrometer and I measured the intensities of the shaded areas which did confirm this.

I read about Faber Castell`s PITT Graphite Matt range pencil which claims to have reduced reflectivity and ranges from HB to 14B. I hope to purchase one or two of these pencils in the near future.

Perhaps I will share my findings here in the future. I will also share my blogpost which will discuss the relative shine of the graphite pencils and provide the intensity curves I measured with the portable Near Infrared spectrometer.

[shazia juna]

Hello,  This is a comment for NMA team. In Chapter 1 of Week 3’s course, the instructor states that Newsprint paper does not contain cellulose in it. Given my background as a chemist (with expertise in related area of starch and polysaccharides gained through my academic research), I would like to inform you that nearly all papers are made of cellulose, including Newsprint.

Cellulose is derived from various botanical sources: 1. Wood pulp, 2. Cotton, 3. Bamboo, 4. other plant waste such as rice husks etc. The cheapest and most common source of cellulose is wood pulp, and depending on the extent of processing wood pulp paper contains varying degrees of cellulose and some amounts of lignins. Lower quality and often cheaper paper, including Newsprint, contain lignins alonside cellulose. But the major constituent in these wood-pulp derived paper, including Newsprint, is Cellulose.  During the manufacturing of Newsprint paper, the lignins are not removed from the wood pulp (major constituent is still cellulose) which are responsible for yellowing of the paper (oxidation process) and therefore non-archival.

The major constituent of Cotton paper is also Cellulose, as with wood pulp-derived paper! The cellulose fibres in cotton paper are considerably longer (hence stronger) than the cellulose fibres derived from wood-pulp, which contributes to the archival quality of paper made from cotton.

There are of course some papers which are not made of cellulose such as Yupo paper which are extruded from polypropylene. Another example is Mineral or Stone paper which is made of 80% Calcium Carbonate and 20% HDPE (high density polyethylene plastic resin).

I hope you will consider the information and consult some resources online to update the information in this lecture.

[shazia juna]

Hello, This comment is intended for the NMA team. The information regarding the Paper (chapter 11) in this lesson is a bit misleading. I have a strong background in chemistry: PhD and postdoctoral research (polysaccharides– cellulose is also a polysaccharide). I am learning to paint and draw. I hope you can consult external specialists (technical chemists in the paper industry) and provide a more accurate overview of papers. In the video the instructor states that wood pulp paper is cellulose, while cotton is different….

Both wood pulp and cotton papers consist of cellulose. The major difference between wood pulp and cotton paper are the actual lengths of the cellulose fiber: cellulose fiber derived from cotton is considerably longer hence stronger than the shorter cellulose fiber derived from wood pulp.

One interesting option are papers made from recycled bamboo waste, and the cellulose fibers derived from bamboo are comparable to the cellulose fibers derived from cotton. Commercially, Hahnemühle produce Bamboo Mixed Media paper and sketchbooks which are environmentally-friendly.

I hope that NMA will consult several chemists (paper industry) and update the information in this chapter accordingly. Thanks!!

[shazia juna]

Hello,  I thought I would share this infomration for individuals who would prefer to use cruelty-free art materials. Just a comment as a vegan with a previous background in Chemistry (both industrial and academic), learning to draw and paint. Softer graphite pencils  B-9B (I think there is a 12B now) typically contain some form of fat which improves the adhesion of graphite particles to the paper surface. The only vegan-friendly pencils I have found are produced by Faber Castell where they use synthetic oils rather than tallow (most common across various brands). Derwent also label their pencils with information relating to vegan-friendly status.

There is also some controversy surrounding Sharpies, as they may contain animal-based raw materials and maybe tested on animals. But there are alternatives available, as I am based in Europe, Faber Castell permanent markers are an option.

 

• This reply was modified 2 years, 2 months ago by shazia juna.

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