Metalpoint

Drawing with metal is an ancient method of making marks. In Roman times, lead rods were used to write letters and keep records. In the Medieval period, lead and silver and other metals were used to write and to draw. Today, metalpoint drawing--usually with silver--is undergoing something of a rebirth. Silverpoint, in particular is being used more and more for drawing and for multimedia art.

Leonardo daVinci, "Warrior in a Helmet," silverpoint,ca. 1475

In my practice, metalpoint drawings have had a place for more than a decade. Because silver marks are darker and cooler I prefer silver to goldpoint, although gold makes beautiful, warm strokes. Silver marks age to a mellow color as the silver oxidizes, which appeals to me more. As is the case with other media, some of my past work was copying masters like daVinci and others. One of the attractions of the medium is the fine and delicate linework that can result. In daVinci's profile of a warrior in a helmet you can see the extremely fine lines and subtle hatching that have attracted artists for centuries.

Hoff, "Study of Tree Roots after Constable," silverpoint

Lately my metalpoint drawings have been landscapes, a subject that isn't common for the medium. Some, like the study of a tree were done to study the work of a particular artist (John Constable, right), or as personal exercises. The fine lines of silver seem well-suited to the sinuous grain of wood and offer opportunities to study line weight and thickness, methods of shading and hatching and other techniques. Constable's drawing was made in pencil in the 1830s.

Hoff, "Tree Out Back," silverpoint

Some of my landscapes were done on the spot, rather like doing plein air painting. The drawing at left was done after a big snowstorm which left the landscape very nearly monochromatic. I tried in this particular drawing to use variations in edges to set the scene, with the two trees in the foreground being in sharper focus.

Hoff, "Rosebud," silverpoint

Besides landscape I've also done quite a few still life drawings in silverpoint, in particular floral studies. Flowers and flower buds, especially rosebuds, offer great opportunities for the silverpoint artist owing to the delicacy of the petals and leaves. And while metalpoint is monochromatic, the absence of color seems to matter very little. Instead I find myself marveling at the structure of these evanescent beauties.

The medium of metalpoint forces deliberate and careful drawing, mostly owing to the difficulty with effacing any metal marks. Many sources claim that silverpoint is not erasable, but in actuality that depends on the heaviness of the marks and the support surface. If the support is solid and the priming thick enough you can erase metalpoint with very fine grit sandpaper, applied with a very light touch. Regardless, the best results are obtained without such maneuvers.






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