What is Hyperrealism?

Hyperrealism is essentially an art form that not only replicates photorealism, resembling a high resolution picture.

How did you get into Hyperrealism?

I've always liked drawing but never really took it seriously till shortly after the Covid Pandemic started.

How long does it take per drawing?

Hours. I'm still pretty new to it and get impatient, still racking up 30-40 hours on a drawing overtime. However, someone people take 100s of hours on their drawings depending on the size of their canvas/paper.

Graphite vs Charcoal?

Graphite has a bit of sheen in the darker areas which can be annoying for a larger size drawing. Charcoal is much more matte, and is easier to get dark tones with, but its quite a lot messier and easier to smudge. I used both interchangeably.

Whats the best type of paper for Hyperrealism?

I prefer bristol board with a little bit of teeth so that I can get sharp edges, and also so the paper fibers absorb the graphite easier.

Small/thin hair techniques?

One way is to use a Tombow mono eraser for its small edge and "slice" eraser marks over shading to create fine hairs. Another technique I use is etching. I take an empty ballpoint pen and etch scratches into the paper for those small, bright hairs, and for hair highlights, that way the graphite glides over the scratches when I shade in the hair.

What are blending stumps for?

Blending stumps are for blending, whether its getting a large area to look the same, or transition from a darker tone to a lighter tone. Blending tools and techniques are argueably one of the most important fundamentals to Hyperrealism.

Do you ever use color?

I do not. I like to stick to graphite and sometimes charcoal. So white, black, and every shade inbetween.