Mastering Silverpoint Drawing Techniques: A Modern Guide

Silverpoint drawing techniques were commonly practiced during the Renaissance by artists such as Jan van Eyck, Leonardo da Vinci, Albrecht Dürer, and Raphael and are the ancestor of the modern graphite pencil. Silverpoint is a drawing instrument composed of a small, pointed metal tip, usually of silver, encased in a holder.

Silverpoint can be used on various supports, including paper, parchment, and wood, but the surface requires special preparation or a ground for the metal to leave a mark. Paper, which is most commonly used, is coated with an opaque white or tinted ground composed of powdered bone ash, chalk or lead white, and gum water. Several layers are usually applied. The natural tone of the ground is off-white, but it can be colored with any pigment. The ground is slightly abrasive so that metal from the stylus rubs off and has sufficient ‘tooth’ to retain the particles. The silver particles oxidize over time, giving a final tone to the drawing.

The medium is also called “metalpoint” for drawing with copper, gold, platinum, and brass. Each metal has its own “softness” and oxidation reaction. Copper is soft and produces a greenish oxidized tone. Silver, another soft metal, creates brownish-black oxidation. Gold and platinum are hard without oxidizing. Brass is very hard with light black oxidation. The length of time and the degree to which oxidation occurs depends on local conditions, but copper usually oxidizes in 1–2 months. Silver oxidizes at a much slower rate—about 4–6 months. Sulfur can speed up the process of oxidization.

Eliza, 2006, Koo Schadler, Silverpoint and egg tempera on blue-toned gesso panel, 6 x 8 in, Collection of the Evansville Museum, Evansville, Indiana.