ArtistsNetwork.com 43The primacy of line in the drawing processcanhardlybe
overstated. The word “draw,” from OldEnglishdragan(to
drag), in itself evokes the path made bya stickofcharcoal,
an ink pen or the tip of a sharp pencil.Virtuallyeverybook
or course on drawing begins with theactofdrawinga line.
But what does the line represent? Forthebeginning
artist, it’s a contour line—a long, thinmarkthatdivides
an object from the empty space surroundingit orthat
separates one form overlapping anotherform.Asbegin-
ners progress, they learn that the linealsoexpresses
emotion, captures movement and suggestsvolume.
In my drawing classes, I teach two methodsinaddition
to contour drawing: linear tension andoutlinephotogra-
phy. Both use line, but not in the traditionalway,andeach
produces remarkably different visual resultsthatrequire
a slightly different way of observing three-dimensionalform.
Let’s examine three ways to draw withline—each
method demonstated with a small copyofNikeof
Samothrace (see My Model, below) asthesubject.
DRAWING
Three Lines of Study
ANDREW S. CONKLINdemonstratesthreewaystoconveyformwithline.
This observational
drawing combines a
contour line with
some hatching to
convey volume.OBSERVATIONAL DRAWING
First, look at my pencil and ink observational drawing
(above). I approached the subject in a traditional way,
measuring it by extending a vertical pencil in my hand
and comparing shapes, which I sketched in lightly on
yellow paper with pencil and then reinforced with ink.
I drew long contour lines to describe the overall propor-
tions and then added a series of broken and dotted lines
to suggest volume transitions. I avoided cross-hatching,My Model: This
small reproduction
of the Hellenistic
marble sculpture
Nike of Samothrace
is the subject of my
three drawings.WORKSHOP Build