Conte Pencils.

[Zaphod]

Hello.

I've read in the past that Conte pencils are supposed to be very good for lifedrawing. I would like to try them out, so I wonder what type of conte it should be and if they are available in Europe/Sweden? I know I saw them once in Japan. But I remember that there were some different kinds but not which one was the "good one".

Thanks!
/Magnus

[Twisted Nail]

You see, there really isn't a "best" pencil for any subject. I personally prefer Derwent, but that is just an opinion. When it comes down to pencils, there are three main groups: H, HB, and B. H is hard, light and precise, B is soft and produces a more thick and dark line, and HB is a mix. Every group also has a numerical rating ranging from 1-9, i.e. a B9 is ultra-soft, and a H1 is light hard. However, do note that each brand uses a different naming system, but you should be able to recognize the resemblances and work out what works best for you. If you really want to buy conté, that should be no problem, they are one of the largest pencil brands.

[Yoonjin]

Tjenare Magnus, har ett helt gäng contepennor här.
De är mjuka o vaxiga som fan, fast personligen föredrar jag det gamla hederliga grafiten.

De är ganska tjocka, tjockare än vanliga pennor så det är svårt att få en spets som varar länge

[Zaphod]

Twisted Nail: I'm sure you mean well, but that wasn't really what I was asking for. I probably asked the question in a clumsy way. I'm sorry.

I already know the conventional hardness-system. The thing with these pencils are that they are supposed to be different from the usual leadpencils. I'm not sure exactly how, so that's why I would like to try them out. I DO actually own one Conté pencil I bought in Japan a long time ago. And it is, as Yoonjin says, quite waxy and thick. The thing is, that I read (in an old thread, long a ago) that you should make sure you get the right Conté, if you want they were talking about. Otherwise it's a different type of pencil! So I'm trying to find out what type of Conté it was. I tried to search for it. But I couldn't find the reference I was looking for.

So if anybody knows, what is the Conté type that is usually used by, among others, Ron Lemen in his lifedrawings? I have Conté France 1710. Is that the same?

Thanks!

Yoonjin: Vart köpte du dem? På In-ex eller Matton då kanske?

[jetpack42]

Conte 1710 B or 2B is the kind most widely recommended where I go.

[ramoutar]

Few things...

1. I believe that a lot of people use the 1710 Conte pencils (like the guys at Watt's)
2. Ron uses (I think) Ritmo charcoal pencils
3. There is no best pencil for life drawing. Just the tool that you use best. I've seen people use a .5 mechanical pencil in life drawing and produce some breath taking work...hell of a lot better than I could do with anything else.

Just my $0.02.

[Zaphod]

Jetpack, ramoutar: Thanks! That's what I was looking for. I actually thought Ron Lemen was using Conté pencils. Seems like I was wrong. :\

Don't get me wrong, I'd be the last one to say that you get better at drawing by using some special pen, pencil, wacom tablet or whatever. However I Do belive that knowing a wide variety of materials is important. At least to try them out. Because something that can, but not necessarily always does, improve is your ability to render something if you have the right materials. Natrually it's easier to render a big portrait with a full range of values, if you have the right pencils/charcoal. If you have a full set of pencils, or at least the "most important" (one light value, middle value and one darker value) of the hardness scale, it will improve your ability to render contra having a mecanichal pencil.

I'm not saying that skill is unaccounted for when it comes to rendering, but the wrong materials can limit you. Not forgetting that sometimes that can even be a good way to explore new styles.

Anyhow, cased closed: Thanks everyone for responding!

[jetpack42]

Ron Lemen uses anything he can get his hands on.

Everyone at Watts prefers the Ritmo pencils, but Generals bought them and turned them into the Primo pencils (so there is no more Ritmos being made). which are not the same as the old Ritmos. So...now the most widely used pencil around there is the Conte 1710 B and 2B, closely followed by the Wolf Carbon 4b and 6b, and then some people are using a Prismacolor Charcoal Pencil, and the Primos.

The teachers use all of the above.

[MadSamoan]

Zaphod,

To be specific, the pencils you're looking for are the Conte Pierre Noire 1710's. They're black with a gold band at the end and they usually retail for around $2.25 - $2.50 USD.

The 'old' Ritmo pencils that are so popular at the southern California private art schools have not been made for some time. The Ritmo pencils being manufactured now are very different and not popular with the old Ritmo fans. Many of them still have small caches of these pencils buried on remote desert islands or locked away in safes guarded by state of the art security systems and the pencils are only brought out once a year for special occasions. However, to add another dramatic twist, Ritmo just introduced a new line, called Ritmo Art Alternatives. They're very soft and even a B hardness Art Alternative pencil handles like a 3B Conte.

When I attended Watts, the pencil of choice and probably still is, is the Conte Pierre Noir (B's and 2B's). Actually they kind of required them because they didn't have to deal with all the nuances that each pencil brand has when instructing students. They're great pencils. Expensive though.

The pencil that Ron professed his new love for at the San Diego Comic Con, is the Primo which is a new line of General's pencil. Supposedly General bought the old Ritmo formula from Ritmo and the Primo is the result. While the Primo is a great pencil and one of my recent favorites, it still doesn't handle quite like an old Ritmo, but is very close.

I must mention however, that General's has reformulated their main brand (the orange ones) and they're actually really good as well. The charcoal lead is thicker in circumference, the wood is softer and they've eliminated that annoying glue that was really hard to chip off the lead when you're sharpening it.

So basically to sum it up, we're kind of in the middle of a charcoal pencil renaissance!

The new Ritmo Art Alternatives are pretty good, but very soft
The Primos are great
The new General's are great
The Conte Pierre Noirs are good, but twice as expensive as the others.

[darth massacre]

I'm using conte pencils right now after being recommended by this fella.


The Art of Joe Furman (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=33335)

I think that's his student posting for him. I asked what he used and the reply was conte pencils.


ITs easier to pick up than conte sticks....but I alternate between the 2 for my own way of drawing. Works well for me so far....I like 2Bs.

[Main Loop]

i like the conte's a lot for line drawing, but i think i prefer the ease of going dark that the ritmos have.. ive gotten pretty good at handling the compressed charcoal sticks so i really like those now.. the conte pencils only drawback to me is that thewood is somewhat hard to shave off.. good stuff, worth the try