The daily dose of art KEEPING THE LINE ONLINE

Working the midnight shift in the ER encourages the mind to do strange things, such as exploring new creative ways to utilize that mundane mark called "line".   This from one of my ER journals:

The line also found application in representing the days of the ER week, as seen in "line days".

And I will end this nonsense with a page from Feb 18, 198?

Black & White Plus part 2

In the beginning it was all about the line.  It is impossible for me to describe the excitement and enthusiasm I experienced as I began to express my fascination with the surrounding urban environment with a series of simple line drawings.  Of course part of the reason for the pen and ink was my lack of facility in the various color mediums.  But even as that eventually changed my love for the simple line drawings continued.

Here are several drawings from those early years.

THE LINE

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It has been many years since I seriously and consistently worked with the line as the primary means of expression in my art.  It has a limited role in my architectural renderings in watercolor, and none in the clay monotypes or acrylic paintings, where composition and color are the means to creating drama and mood.  But, when properly executed, the simplest lines can evoke powerful and dramatic images.

It was during my first four years working in emergency rooms that I learned to appreciate the power and subtleties of line drawings, expressed exclusively in my on the spot sketchbook entries.  (Studio work at that time was always with watercolor.)   I recaptured some of the spirit of on the spot sketching during my trip to Italy in 2010, but have done little to sustain it since my return.  Yet it remains lurking in the back of my mind as I remember the joy and satisfaction I would feel when I successfully captured my subject in a few well-placed lines.  Maybe 2013 will be the time when I recover my pen and sketchbook.

Here are a few of what I consider the best of line drawings.

For an excellent example of the power of the line, I recommend a book by Gabrielle Vincent called
A day, a dog, a moving story told only with simple drawings.  It is wonderful.

ECONOMY OF LINE

It is almost 4 years since our week in Tuscany, and I have never tired of painting and drawing its beautiful landscapes.  Most of work has been in either acrylic, pastel, or watercolor, but recently I've been having fun with pen and ink, creating simple line drawings.  The challenge has been to use as few lines as possible to capture the nature of the countryside.  Here are a few early efforts: each measuring about 3x5"

 Tuscan 1

 Tuscan 2

Tuscan 3

 Tuscan 4

  Tuscan 5

 Tuscan 6