Developing a Linear Style

[Julie G]

In one of my illustration classes, the professor made a point that person's preferences in art tend to be more linear or form-based (I'm not sure exactly what word he used, but I mean the more 3-dimensional looking art where the initial lines are not very prominent if seen at all). I'm not saying you can't do both, but his point was that people were generally drawn to art that has linework in it or not based on the individual looking at it. Well, I have always been drawn to work that does have line as a major element of the finished piece, however, I don't know how to draw that way.

Perhaps I should clarify, while I love art like Mucha, Beatrix Potter, and even the concept art for the Okami video game, I don't know how to make my drawings look finished with the linework still showing through. (I suppose I also like art that looks like this (http://www.artofokami.com/images/amaterasu/amaterasu_36.jpg), but I have the same problem.) To put it simply, I don't know how to feel satisfied with just line work. It looks beautiful when I see it, but when I do something like it myself, unless it's just in a notebook or such, it feels unfinished.

While I personally don't consider myself good enough at drawing to highlight a style like that, I am enrolled in essentially a figure drawing class, but is there anything I can do to make myself feel more comfortable with a linear style while I improve my anatomy and such? I know the answer to anything here tends to be to just practice drawing from life, but I'm asking more about the technique in this case.

[dwilliams]

Perhaps try drawing your figures and gestures in pen. The more you do it the more comfortable you'll get using line, as that's what pen is really good at.

[Aphotic Phoenix]

Well, I'm sort of in the same boat because I'm definitely a "linear" person, but my quality of line simply isn't up to snuff. XD If you're still in the stage where you still need to "feel out" the lines in your artwork to create form, you shouldn't expect the first sketch or drawing to come out the way you want.

Really, take a closer look at Mucha and Potters art and pay special attention to how they handle their lines to create some edges and not others. Note where the lines are thicker and darker, vs thinner and lighter. Think about where you would put lines if you were sketching the image, and then pay attention to where they DON'T include them.

Clux's suggestion is a good one. I'd also recommend that if you don't already make sketches first to plan a piece of work, start doing so. Make your sketch, and then start considering where you can refine line weight. What can be removed? What edges should be soft, and which hard? Etc. Hopefully, over time this will become more automatic as you become more confident in your drawing skills, and you're sketches will reflect that attention to line.

[SoufMeng]

I think there are several, at least two, kinds of functions for lines;
-those to construct your drawing, that help set up a quick perspective, check alignment, symmetry, etc; like here (http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/287/2379/1600/clarkline_page.2.jpg) (art by Nathan Fowkes).
-and the other kind of lines could be considered more "accessory", lets be gross and say the lines that you use to make things prettier...

Looking at your sketchbook i would say your still struggling with the former approach, the construction stuff, and maybe that has a share in your disliking the lines in your drawings.

IMO you're young and still have plenty of time on your hands to worry about lines.
Perhaps youll be better off in two years if you focus your energy on having a sound drawing.
Moreover like you said yourself, one same artist can use various techniques and line styles, way harder to get around sound drawing however!

I know the answer to anything here tends to be to just practice drawing from life, [...]
:shrug: :shrug: :shrug:


(crosspost)

[Julie G]

For what it's worth, all of those sketches are at least a year old. :/ Almost exactly. I'll try to update it soon-ish.

The problem is, even when I'm doing a figure drawing in class, that I like, it still feels unfinished with just the lines. I'm attaching an underdrawing from a recent illustration (done from a photo). While the professor in front might not be perfect, he's not too glaringly bad.

My problem is that although I'll get better at drawing, that doesn't mean I'll have any idea of how to get a nice looking linear style.

[Aphotic Phoenix]

Okay well lets look at that image you've just posted and use it as an example.

Why are the lines of the head darker and bolder than the lines of his pants? I'm doubting that was a conscious decision. The weight of your lines can indicate more than form...light source for example. Areas in shadow are often depicted with a thicker/heavier line, while areas in light are lighter and thinner. Likewise line weight can indicate depth. So considering that, if you re-worked this sketch what would you purposefully change?

This is why it's good to feel confident in your ability to draw something first, so you're not adding a new layer of complexity on top.

[armando]

Drawing with line, and keeping the space within those lines clear, tends to stress the picture surface, so that you're dealing mostly with pattern. This book gives a pretty good account of it, with a Japanese influence: http://www.archive.org/details/compositionserie00dowauoft

Probably the two most basic ways to organize your line is by branching and radiation/convergence, either the lines are shooting off from one line, or else they're moving away or converging to a point.

Keep balance in mind when composing. Think of the center of the rectangle as the balancing point, if you were to balance the rectangle on your finger that's the spot where you would place it. By placing shapes off center you get tension or movement, the shape seems to pull away from the center but also be attracted by it, it needs to be counter balanced.(I first learned this idea in John F. Taylor's "Design and Expression in the Visual Arts. Rudolph Arnheim's "The Power of the Center" is good too) This concept of thrust is very important and a lot of the meaning in a picture comes from this. This concept is derived from our sense of the body, our understanding of humanity, and that's one of the reasons for live figure drawing: looking for and sensing the different thrusts of the body, the way it balances, and how that effects the meaning of the pose.

Three things to notice on the Okami picture, which I chose because Mucha's beyond my ability: first is how the figure is placed off center creating a thrust to the left, which is then counter balanced by the calligraphy in the corner. Then notice how the figure is shaped like an arrow pointing to the left. A good book explaining that is Mike Mattesi's "Force", which is just another name for thrust. Then notice how the lines mostly point towards the head, branching from it, where the main point of the pose is the snarling aggressive face.

To get ideas for lines, look at linear things in life: snakes, lightning, trees, pasta, lines in sand, waves, tails, hair. It also might be worthwhile to look at a book on Chinese Painting. I recently checked out Breissen's "The Way of the Brush" from the library, I haven't read it, but have just been looking at the pictures, I like the poetic names for the linear techniques: "like nail heads with rat tails", "like wasp bodies", "like a series of olive pits"...

[Julie G]

Aphotic Phoenix - If I were to rework the sketch, as an attempt to do a line drawing, I'd probably give a thicker outline to overall form, thicker on the head and on our right side, but that's just following the rules, not because I understand them. And I mean perhaps that's what I need to do until I can understand them, but that's where my sticking point is (that I don't understand it much yet).

armando - that is perhaps the best way you could have described composition to me! I shall look at those books. Am I right in assuming that your main advice is to use line compositionally?

[armando]

Yes, mostly concerning dividing up a rectangle and getting things to balance, which Dow's book does a really good job of explaining.

[Pezz3D]

I'm not really sure if I'm one to be handing out advice, but here goes. I'm answering your question on the assumption that you are looking to use lines in such a way that you could use them in a finished piece. To be clear, I do not go to art school I'm a philosophy major and taught myself the whole drawing thing, so take my advice with a grain of salt. What I would suggest doing is drawing with an ink and brush, for the most part I think line work looking good is based on the confidence the lines are placed with. You should try doing portraits, laying out in pencil then inking, to me faces tend to have details that endorse line use. Killing your pencil and drawing with a pen is very helpful too, since it forces you to use lines you create and adapt, and crosshatching is based mostly on the same Ideas good line contour is based in, portraying movement and depth. Keep line width in mind when you are drawing with lines, think of how it might be adjusted to give a sense of depth, i.e using thicker lines v. smaller lines. All in all using a long thin brush, that you have to pay attention to, with a bit of black liquid acrylic to really helps to make the whole line making thing alot easier, since you aren't pressing down and making your lines look forced like you would with a pen.