Prismacolor: Charcoal & Graphite

Shop professional charcoal and graphite drawing supplies for sketching, shading, portraiture, figure drawing, landscapes, and fine art. Explore charcoal pencils, graphite pencils, vine and willow charcoal, compressed charcoal, graphite sticks, drawing powders, water-soluble graphite, liquid charcoal, and drawing sets from trusted artist brands.

Whether you prefer the deep, expressive blacks of charcoal or the precise lines and smooth tonal control of graphite, Jerry's Artarama offers drawing materials for artists, students, illustrators, and professional studios.

See Also Recommended: Drawing Paper, Drawing Pencils and Leads, Drawing Fixatives

Charcoal & Graphite Drawing Materials for Every Drawing Style

Charcoal and graphite are two of the most versatile drawing materials used by artists. Both can create everything from quick gesture sketches to highly detailed finished drawings, but they produce distinctly different marks and effects.

Charcoal creates rich blacks, broad tonal ranges, expressive marks, and soft transitions that can be blended, smudged, lifted, and erased. Artists frequently use charcoal for figure drawing, portrait drawing, landscapes, gesture studies, underdrawings, and large-scale artwork.

Graphite produces smooth gray-to-black tones and offers excellent control for precise lines, gradual shading, fine details, and realistic rendering. Graphite pencils and sticks are popular for sketching, portraiture, illustration, architectural studies, detailed drawing, and photorealistic artwork.

Professional Drawing Supplies from Trusted Artist Brands

Jerry's Artarama offers charcoal and graphite materials from respected drawing brands including Cretacolor, Faber-Castell, General Pencil, Nitram, Caran d'Ache, Prismacolor, Schmincke, Winsor & Newton, SoHo Urban Artist, Raffiné, Cezanne, and more. For more than 55 years, Jerry's Artarama has helped artists find quality fine art materials for the studio, classroom, and creative practice.

Charcoal vs. Graphite: Which Should You Use?

Choose charcoal when you want deep blacks, dramatic contrast, loose expressive marks, easy blending, and broad tonal effects. Choose graphite when you want precise lines, controlled shading, fine detail, smooth value transitions, and greater control over subtle tonal changes. Many artists use both. Graphite can establish detailed lines and structure while charcoal adds deeper shadows, expressive marks, and stronger contrast.

What is the difference between charcoal and graphite?

Charcoal generally produces deeper blacks, softer edges, and more expressive, easily blended marks. Graphite produces smoother gray-to-black tones and provides greater control for precise lines, detailed shading, and realistic drawing.