Linework in the Landscape Art

Linework and Landscape Art

Line and wash art tends to feature drawn lines and colours or tones created by watercolour or ink washes. Sometimes the lines are used to demarcate and isolate a region such as an area of colour or a light value. These lines can also be divides between components within the drawing, such as foreground and background.

There are obviously many ways to tackle a piece of art but with the line and wash technique there are usually two different approaches; either linework first and then paint or paint first and then linework.

Choosing what to draw in pen and what to paint is often dependant on the balance an artist trying to achieve, the most applicable media for the subject and the overall value you want that subject to have, within the whole of the image.

Some Examples

Artists like Simone Ridyard use quite dense regular linework and then offset that with large sweeping almost abstract colour washes.

Here Tomas Pajdlhauser adds pops of bright colour to suggest the people and add interest and textures.

Artist Brian Ramsey uses quite an abstract and characterful linework style and then paints very specific parts of the image to great effect. His art is fabulous!

For all that drawing and sketching would appear at first to be a pretty straight forward activity there are many different ways to approach a subject. Whether you are a hyper-real details person or a wobbly lined expressionist, the key to having fun is to be afraid it and explore.

One of the benefits of working in any sketching media is the ability to work quickly without the need to layer up parts of a piece one Layer at a time. Doing some quick sketch mock-ups of a drawing is a great way to capture some ‘value studies’ before you commit to the expensive paper.

Achieving an interest balance of colour and line is a very fun part of this process. Linework will always have a relatively fixed value as typically you cannot vary the width of the line hugely but you can easily add more pigment to the paint. That said, there are different types of pens that do give a very different line character. Flex nibs, fountain pens, fineliners, brush pens and even sharpened sticks can be used to create all sorts of different marks with different characters.

Even with a fix sized pen the line work still has density of its own. Using techniques such as cross-hatching and repeatedly going over areas darkens the lines means the linework can be more complicated than the painting process.

Playing with line thickness by either using different pens or doubling up certain lines can help components within the drawing feel close up or further away from the viewer. Line density also can have this effect as well as being used to create shadow and detail.

Ultimately, it’s up to you as the artist to make all the fun decisions.

Developing your own visual language is an ongoing journey for all artist and often you chop and change techniques to learn new skills or just try new adaptations or combinations. When sketching in the city I really appreciate the speed of a line and wash drawing but conversely, it’s nice to really take your time and concentrate on just one component. There is always a real simply joy in just using paint to create an image or just sketching in pen, or pencil alone. It really gives you the opportunity of exploring the boundaries of that single media without the distraction of others.

If you want to develop your linework in your own art there are lots of exercises that you can do;

Continues Line Drawing
Continuous line drawing is a technique in which a single unbroken line is used where you keep your mark making tool on the paper all the time. Drawing like this, without lifting the pen or pencil from the paper, is also known as one-line drawing, single line drawing, or contour drawing. This technique can be a great way of changing the character of your lines and also help your observation skills particularly if you really concentrate on the subject you are capturing.

Blind Drawing
This is when you don’t even look at the paper and just draw without looking at what you are drawing. This can help to develop gestural work and improve your timidity when it come to making marks.

Using different materials
There are loads of different ways to make a mark and often chopping and changing between different pens and media is a great way to keep you fresh and on the fun and steep part of the learning curve.

Work Fast
Give yourself a time limit, say ½ hour to do three versions, and just try some new approaches. Experimenting and playing with art is fastest way to learn. Not focussing too much on the end result really helps reinforce that idea that the process is supposed to be fun rather than result in the illusive ‘perfect’ piece of art.

Use a Single Colour
Often using a single colour is great exercise in value and tone. Different mark making techniques, such as dry brushing, or wet in wet also mean with just one colour or ink you can get lots of different textures. You can also paint with pretty much anything (sponges, fingers, grass or a stick) so there is plenty of ways to create interesting marks.

Finally…Enjoy your own language
No-one can tell a story the way you do! That is your special power and, in many ways, the only unique thing about ever artist. Comparing yourself to other artists, who you feel are better sketchers or painters is absolutely pointless and will do nothing but bring you down. Just focus on developing your style, exploring, playing and having fun and you’re going to enjoy your art all the more for it. Being timid and living in fear of making mistakes will ultimately hold you back from expressing yourself.

Well, there you go! These lines have rambled over some landscapes I suppose. Hope you enjoyed the time here x

Linework and Landscape Art

Some Examples

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