The properties of charcoal and its use as an artist’s medium are well known. It is not necessary to go into detail to express how charcoal is a preferred medium for drawing. Recent manufactured charcoal has been made with less quality and it is often a disappointment. Student grade charcoal or less quality charcoal should not be used as a medium. Once you have found a quality charcoal you will never want to use another stick of charcoal.

With charcoal employed as the medium of choice in Sal-Zar™ some very significant attributes occur. When the charcoal is in the Sal-Zar Medium™ it creates a drawing that can be shaped by the artist without resorting to spray fixatives, either temporary or permanent. First, Sal-Zar is freely applied to the paper. I use, and find my paper of preference, for work in all mediums using Sal-Zar Medium, to be Stonehenge. I have used other papers, charcoal paper, Ingress, and watercolor papers. The paper is really saturated with the Sal-Zar Medium. Successful coats of Sal-Zar™ can be freely reapplied to the charcoal drawing: layered on to, and removing the excess with the painting knives.

The procedure for using Sal-Zar™ is relatively standard. This is to apply masking tape to the border of the paper, leaving a margin around the paper of the size you want to leave unexposed and not treated by Sal-Zar.