If you want to learn how to use Conte Crayons but don't know where to start, this workshop is for you. Learn the exciting tips and tricks of the technique directly from the artist.

Conté, also known as Conté sticks or Conté crayons, is a drawing medium made of compressed powdered graphite or charcoal mixed with a square-sectioned clay base. Nicolas-Jacques invented them in 1795. Conté is typically found in black, white, cheerful tones, bistre, grey shades, and other colours. Color sets are useful for both field studies and colour studies. Some artists use them to create entire paintings, treating them more like pastels than a drawing medium.

They're commonly used on rough paper because it holds pigment grains well. They are used for underdrawings for paintings on prepared, primed canvases. Conté pastels are hard and have square edges, making them ideal for detailed hatched work rather than the bolder painterly drawing style required by soft pastels.

About Artist

Varnita Sethi is an India-based artist known for her versatility. She has worked with various materials such as painting, sculpture, assemblage, digital collage, pyrography and handmade collages. Also, she has been honing skills in these mediums for over a decade. During her initial years, she used to teach in school to support her art practice, but after 2012 she solely focused on art. Her works are in private collections, galleries and the National Gallery of the modern art museum India. In 2018 she was part of a residency with Bosco (a Teaching Residency Programme in collaboration with Artreach India and Kiran Nadar Museum). During this residency, she got the opportunity to teach art and interact with the children of refugee families.