A photo of the materials I use. The conte sticks range in colour from black, browns, and reds. Most of my sticks start out full size and become tiny pieces by the end of the night. The conte pencils are used for poses ranging from 1-3 hours.
The series of drawings were done using a red Conte, drawn on newsprint pad at 19 by 24 inches. Our class was lucky enough to have a dynamic model. She is one of the most expressive models I've had.
Poses run from 1 minute - 15 minutes each. Most are gestural in form notwithstanding time for sustained study. These short poses force me to think on my feet. Time is essential and I'm often amazed at how much information I can gather in a short period of time.
These poses are 2 - 5 minutes each.
These poses were 20 minutes long. I'm amazed at how the expression and foreshortening was handled in a short period of time.