Line

Vocabulary

• Descriptive line:– Lines created with a variety of tools; can be outlines,

contour lines, single lines, or hatching.

• Outline:– Lines with little variation that describe the outer edges

of shapes which appear flat.

• Contour line:– Lines that define the outer edges of forms and

surfaces within a form such as shapes or wrnkles and folds

Vocabulary

• Hatching:– Shading using closely spaced, parallel lines used to

suggest light and shadow

• Crosshatching:– Shading created by crossed parallel lines

• A line is an identifiable path created by a point moving in space. It is one-dimensional and can vary in width, direction, and length. Lines often define the edges of a form. Lines can be horizontal, vertical, or diagonal, straight or curved, thick or thin. They lead your eye around the composition and can communicate information through their character and direction.

In nature…• Line plays an important role in the

structure of most natural and human made objects.

• In this photo, notice the internal lines as well as the contour lines

http://www.flickr.com/photos/87212315@N00/2699258993/

In nature…

http://www.caravaglia.com/default2.htm

Expressive linesLines give artworks a particular feelin.What do these lines convey?

Gary Molitor, Baghdad by the Bay, Computer graphics in wood block style. 72” x 56”http://www.garymolitor.com/2D_stuff.htm

linesPrinted letters and numbers are shapes made with lines

Attributed to Adam Weisweiler One of a pair of cabinets

French, Paris, about 1810 Oak veneered with ebony and pewter; set with pietre dure plaques; gilt bronze mounts; portor

d'Italie marble tops H: 3 ft. 4 in. x W: 4 ft. 11 1/8 in. x D: 1 ft. 8 7/8 in.

76.DA.9.1

5Sf

MapsLines and shapes on a map are symbols that satnd for other things like interstate highways, roads and riversS

http://www.digital-topo-maps.com/road-maps/arizona.shtml

Lines in Art.Art has as many kinds of lines as the lines you find in nature or in books or maps.Many lines in art are created by moving a tool such as a pencil, charcoal stick, pen or brush.

Henri Matisse, Woman with Folded Hands, (1918-19.Pen and india ink on white paper, 10 5/8” x 14 7/16”

Minneaplos Institute of Art.http://minneapolis.institute.of.arts.museum/viewer/detail.php?i=6&v=4&dept=2&artist=374

Lines in Art.Some lines can even be made with light

Henri Matisse, Woman with Folded Hands, (1918-19.Pen and india ink on white paper, 10 5/8” x 14 7/16”

Minneaplos Institute of Art.http://minneapolis.institute.of.arts.museum/viewer/detail.php?i=6&v=4&dept=2&artist=374

Photography

Picasso’s old trick of painting with light never grows tired…especially with the addition of the digital camera…These were 15 second exposures ‘drawn’ with a bare mini-mag light bulb at 400 ISO. One person stands very still, and behind them, another person draws the outlines really quickly, and since they are moving so fast, they don’t really show up.These were taken in the woods, where Invisiblefellows Paul, Kerry and I hiked the amazing Escarpment Trail in the Catskills (more to come on that). You can see the full images of these light-paintings here:

http://invisibleman.com/2007/06/sylvan-apparitions/

Lines in Art

• Descriptive• Implied• Expressive

Descriptive linescan convey energy. Soft, shallow lines that help us understand what we are seeing.Descriptive lines include:OutlinesContour linesSingle linesAnd hatching.

http://www.learntoart.com/index.php/archives/drawing/shading-techniques-hatching-scribbling-pointillism/attachment/charcoal-hatching/

Implied linesAre lines that suggest an edge rather than clearly defining one. Implied lines occur where testures, colors, and values change at edges of shapes in artwork

x

Expressive linesWhen repeated, lines can create a pattern. In this example, the artist repeated different kinds of lines across the composition to create various patterns. Patterned lines also give the image rhythm.

Vincent van Gogh Arles: View from the Wheatfields

Dutch, France, 1888 Reed and quill pens and brown ink

12 5/8 x 9 5/8 in. 2001.25

Vincent van GoghDutch, 1853-1890

Weeping Tree, 1889Art Institute of Chicago

Wheat Field with Cypresses at the Haude Galline near EygalieresVincent van Gogh - 1889 

Drawing Height: 47 cm (18.5 in.), Width: 62 cm (24.41 in.) Van Gogh Museum (Netherlands) 

Elizabeth Catlett. American, born 1915Sharecropper, 1952, printed 1970

Color linocut on cream Japanese paper450 x 431 mm (block); 544 x 513 mm (sheet)

Signed recto, lower right: "Elizabeth Catlett"; inscribed recto, lower left: "A/P Sharecropper"Restricted gift of Mr. and Mrs. Robert S. Hartman, 1992.182

© Elizabeth Catlett/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY. Art Institute of Chicago

Larry RiversPortrait of Edwin Denby, 1953

Pencil on paper16 3/8 x 19 3/4" (41.5 x 50.1 cm)

The MUseum of Modern Art, New York City

William Kentridge Seated Couple (Back to Back) 1998

Courtesy Museum of Modern Art New York © 2010 William Kentridge

Pablo Picasso, Portrait of Olga in a fur collar, 1923.

Pablo Picasso, Head of Marie Therese, 1933