Shark

I really like and admire this piece A LOT, and I feel that it is not only very different from a lot of the other works that I have been looking at and blogging about lately, but it is VERY original and unique to the artist. I think the use of charcoal in this piece is outstanding, because a lot of the time when artist use charcoal in their pieces, you can visibly see and tell that it is charcoal that is used through the texture that the medium creates. In this piece, you cannot tell that the sketch was made from charcoal at ALL, and it looks very surreal and realistic. I also really like the choice of the angle of the shark that was chosen in this piece, because not only are viewers exposed to a lot of the inner details of the shark, but it gives the illusion of a black abyss that does not end...almost as if one is swallowed by the shark and continuously falling deeper and deeper into the shark. I am usually drawn to works that use a lot of color and abstraction, but this work in particular really stands out to me. The use of black and white is also VERY effective, and the shading created through the charcoal is outstanding. All of the slightest details are visible, which makes the piece itself more appealing, especially with such a unique angle of the shark - the details are critical in understanding what the subject matter is and conveying this in an effective and efficient way. 

Image derived from: Longo, Robert. Shark Charcoal Drawings. N.d. Drawing. My Modern Met. Web. 12 Nov 2013. <http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/hyper-realistic-charcoal-shark-drawings>.