Schmincke Liquid Charcoal is an innovative new painting medium that uses the traditional process of making charcoal from natural ingredients. The fruit seeds and stones that are used for Liquid Charcoal are all natural, sourced in the European Union, sorted by type, and charred to create three different shades of black. Then, the charcoal is mixed with natural gum arabic (the same ingredient used to bind watercolors) and processed into a gouache-like consistency.

The final product is a lovely artist color, unlike anything we've tried before. The natural pigments are highly granulating, so you'll quickly develop texture, especially if you are using cold press watercolor paper. Dilute Liquid Charcoal with water to create a full range of tones, from deep, matte black to pale grey. The specific color of the charcoal will be most obvious with dilution, while more concentrated applications will appear pure black.

Designed with mixed media artists in mind, Liquid Charcoal can be mixed and layered with other watercolors, and you can draw on the painted surface with regular charcoal.

This mini set of three 5 mL tubes is a great way to try all three colors: Cherry Pit Black, with a warm tone that's ideal for earth and afternoon light, Peach Stone Black, a lovely neutral black, and Grape Seed Black, a cool tone for morning light, water, and sky. Try combining two different Liquid Charcoal colors in the same painting; for example, you could paint shadow areas with cool black or indoor light with warm black.

The artwork in our photos was made with Cherry Pit Black for the deer and Schmincke Horadam watercolor for the green background.

Made in Germany.