Page 75 - Tibetan Thangka Painting Methodsand Mat, Jackson

Reinforcement of the Sketch:
Redrawing with Brush and Ink
Up until this point it was easy for the artist to make
minor changes and corrections in the sketch by merely
brushing off the charcoal drawings with his hand or with
a piece of cloth, and then redrawing. But when he was
satisfied with the accuracy and beauty of his preliminary
sketch he needed to convert it into something more
permanent -- something that would remain on the
canvas as a guide throughout the subsequent stages of
painting. He therefore reinforced the charcoal sketch
with a brush and black ink (snag tsha). 1
To avoid smearing the charcoal sketch, some
artists redrew it by applying the ink from bottom to
top, reversing the order of the original sketch. They took
great care in this ink drawing, for it determined the
permanent design of the painting except for the minor
details. Here every effort was made to correct and
improve upon the charcoal sketch. To steady their
drawing hand some artists rested the edge of their hand
on the canvas when inking in the sketch. Others worked
with their drawing hand supported above the canvas on a
thin wooden support, a technique that will be described
below in more detail. When inking the sketch some
painters held the brush as one might hold a pencil, but
very near the tip. (We observed one painter who
Wangdrak inking his sketch.
constantly rotated the brush as he worked by flicking it
with his middle finger. Each flick turned the brush a
little and encouraged a continuous flow of ink.) As the formidably complex. Fortunately he was not expected
painter came to each figure in the design, he commonly to learn all of these things within a short period. The
delineated the head first, and then the other exposed neophyte usually spent years familiarizing himself
portions of the body. Then came the robes and the with the main proportional classes and with the
flowing ornamental scarves. For textiles in particular frequently recurring designs and motifs, meanwhile
the artist used continuous sweeping motions of the mastering the basic techniques of paint application and
brush to achieve outlines that curved gracefully. shading. As might be expected, in any project of con-
On small figures, minor details such as facial sequence the actual designing of the layout was left to
features and ornaments could be omitted from both the the skill and judgment of a seasoned artist.
charcoal and ink sketches. On the main figures, however, Still, a young painter was able to work on his own
the artists commonly sketched and inked such features quite early in his training, because he could practice
even when they were sure to be overlaid by the copying and painting already finished designs without
following coats of paint. having to execute an original composition himself. Not
Finally, when the whole sketch was completed only did the novice sometimes paint over drawings made
and the ink dry, the artist dusted off the canvas to by his teacher, but he also quickly learned short-cut
remove any charcoal dust that remained. techniques for transferring other artists' designs onto the
Few painters still use all the sketching methods surface of his own canvas. Master artists too made use of
described above. For instance we observed one who such techniques for transferring designs, and rightly so,
inked the sketch from top to bottom, following the since such methods saved a great deal of time.
usual order for charcoal sketching. This artist, however,
had used graphite lead pencils for his original sketch Pouncing
instead of charcoal crayons. Consequently there was
little danger of his erasing the underlying sketch while The first requirement for any transfer was, of course, to
working above it. Some other artists who sketched with obtain a good original. Often the design to be copied was
a famous composition that had been carved on large
graphite pencils omitted the inking altogether. 2
xylograph blocks at such great printing centers as Derge
or Narthang. The student could also use as his original
The Transfer of Designs an ink drawing made by his own teacher or by some
other accomplished artist. However, it woutd disfigure
For .the beginner, the above methods of laying out the xylograph print or original drawing to use it directly
proportional grids and drawing each figure were as a stencil, and therefore many artists made their

THE TRANSFER OF DESIGNS 71