Techniques of using pen and ink

Above about pen and ink techniques for fine art drawing.

A pen may seem like a basic drawing tool, but artists can get a wide range of effects from using simple pen and ink techniques. There are five general pen drawing techniques that can be used to add texture and shading to a drawing. These methods are simple shading, stippling, crosshatching, contour hatching and random hatching.

How to Do Shading with Pen and Ink

Shading with a pen is a little different from shading with a pencil. Here's how to get a nice shading effect:

1. Hold the pen in the center, as shown in the first illustration at the end of this article. Note: Click on the picture to enlarge it or to see more detail.
2. Lightly press the tip of the pen to the paper.
3. Sweep the tip of the pen across the paper in a back-and-forth motion.
4. As the shaded area gets lighter, drag your hand across the paper so that there are fewer strokes in one area.

What is Crosshatching and How to Crosshatch Using a Pen

Crosshatching is the process of making lines in one direction and then overlapping the lines with perpendicular lines. Follow these guidelines for creating crosshatching in pen and ink:

• Draw vertical lines on the paper and then draw horizontal lines across the vertical lines.
• The closer together the lines are, the darker the area will appear.
• The further away the lines are separated, the lighter the area will appear.
• Don't worry about the lines being perfectly straight. Wavy lines will add energy to the drawing.

See the second illustration at the bottom of this article for an example of crosshatching.

Random Hatching and Contour Hatching Techniques

Random hatching and contour hatching are variations of the crosshatching technique.

Read more at Suite101: Pen and Ink Techniques for Fine Art Drawings http://drawing.suite101.com/article.cfm/pen-and-ink-techniques-for-fine-art-drawings#ixzz0qDCu0kAG