Compressed charcoal produces the deepest, most intense black available in any drawing material. That statement is not marketing — it is a straightforward fact about how the material works. Where natural willow charcoal has a characteristic grey-blue quality and lifts easily from the surface, compressed charcoal is made from soot and clay pressed together into a dense stick, and the mark it leaves is a genuinely profound, rich black that cannot be matched by graphite, natural charcoal, or any other drawing tool. Faber-Castell's Pitt range brings that depth of mark to one of the most reliable and well-made compressed charcoal sticks available.
The Pitt compressed charcoal sticks are oil-free and grease-free, made purely from soot and clay in a formulation that glides across paper without scratching, dragging, or breaking under normal pressure. The mark can be blended and smudged with a finger, a tortillon, or a cloth, allowing smooth gradations from dense black through to the palest grey tone. It can be fixed with charcoal fixative for a permanent result, or left unfixed and reworked indefinitely while work is in progress.
We stock two grades — Soft and Extra Soft — both supplied in packs of three sticks.
Soft is the more controlled of the two. It delivers a dense, very dark mark with good coverage and excellent blending capability, while retaining enough body to allow some precision in mark-making. It is well suited to figure drawing, tonal studies, and work where you need both broad areas of tone and a degree of directional mark control.
Extra Soft is the most yielding grade in the range — the one you reach for when maximum blackness and maximum blendability are the priority. It glides onto the surface with almost no resistance, deposits a particularly rich and dense layer of pigment, and smudges and blends with the lightest touch. It is ideal for large-scale work, bold gestural drawing, and achieving the deepest shadow tones in a tonal composition. The trade-off is that it offers less precision than the Soft grade and can feel less controlled in the hand.
Both grades can be used alongside natural charcoal, charcoal pencils, and other dry media, and are compatible with all standard charcoal fixatives.
What is the difference between compressed charcoal and natural charcoal? Natural charcoal is made by charring willow twigs and produces a characteristic grey-blue mark that sits lightly on the surface, erases easily, and blends softly. Compressed charcoal is made from soot and clay pressed together, producing a much denser, blacker mark with greater pigment intensity. It is harder to remove than natural charcoal and leaves a more permanent mark on the surface. Many artists use both — natural charcoal for initial drawing and lighter tones, compressed charcoal for the deepest darks and final tonal work.
Which grade should I choose — Soft or Extra Soft? If you are new to compressed charcoal, Soft is the more versatile starting point — dark enough for expressive work but with slightly more control than Extra Soft. Extra Soft suits artists who are comfortable with the medium and want maximum pigment intensity and blending ease, particularly for larger scale or bolder work.
Can compressed charcoal be erased? It can be partially lifted and lightened with a kneaded eraser, but compressed charcoal is significantly harder to remove than natural charcoal. For areas where you want to retain the ability to erase cleanly, natural charcoal is the better choice. Most artists treat compressed charcoal marks as more permanent and plan their use of the two types accordingly.
Does it need to be fixed? Yes — as with all charcoal media, finished work should be fixed with a charcoal fixative to prevent smudging and protect the surface. Unfixed compressed charcoal will smear with handling.
How many sticks are in a pack? Both the Soft and Extra Soft are supplied in packs of three sticks.
