After previously working with charcoal and enjoying the process, I decided to create some more sketches using it. Both of these images are in the mood board that I created of my own pictures which I took when I visited Mauritius. I went on a safari when I visited the zoo, where I saw zebras, ostriches and other animals. I found the zebras so beautiful and I had never seen one so up-close before. There were also young zebras as well as adult ones! I want to develop more images of the zebras that I saw, and experiment with other materials. The second image is the hotel room that I was staying in. The room backed onto the beach so there were lots of scenic views. I quite like the ‘rough’ look of the charcoal and I think it works well for quick sketches.

I also created a tonal value piece of the palm trees which surrounded the grounds of the hotel where I stayed. This is another image which I included in my mood board. This image of the palm trees is also what inspired the lino prints that I made. I wanted to draw the image in a more detailed way to contrast the prints. Also, the prints were very bright and colourful, so this offers a different tone to the image.