Gallery: Line
Drawings (continued)
In this deftly executed figure composition, Rubens has masterfully rendered a scene of a group of figures in motion by using
a flurry of lines of varying thicknesses. This was most likely a preparatory sketch for a painting, with the artist working from
memory. Notice the complete unity between the quality and direction of lines, the gestures of the figures, and the composi-
tion. Because of the swiftness of the line, it is as if the drawing was blown across the page in a moment. Notice the faintly
drawn figures in the distance, and the great effect of atmosphere and space that is created.
The Feast of Herod,by Peter Paul Rubens, © Cleveland Museum of Art