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TRY A NEW APPROACH TO THIS EASY-TO-USE MEDIUM THAT ALLOWS YOU TO CHANGE YOUR COMPOSITIONS AS YOU WORK.
By Ron Colgrove
Taking a different view
Many people think of pen and ink as a technical medium that’s a bit intimidating because each stroke of the pen seems so permanent and unforgiving. But that’s certainly not true in my experience. Although some of my work is very exacting in nature, I’m still able to create a completely artistic response to the world around me. This variety in my style and the ongoing decisions I make as I work, keep me and my customers-satisfied. So if you’ve been avoiding pen and ink, give my techniques a try. With a little effort, you’ll soon discover just how flexible and expressive this medium can be.
An organic process
Contrary to popular belief, pen and ink does allow for some spontaneity. In Apple Tree (pen and ink, 24 x 20), I started with the trunk and added leaves and limbs until the picture was filled out. I was careful, however, to not fill in too much of the trunk, so I could later draw in the branches that cross it.
TRY A NEW APPROACH TO THIS EASY-TO-USE MEDIUM THAT ALLOWS YOU TO CHANGE YOUR COMPOSITIONS AS YOU WORK.
By Ron Colgrove
Knowing when to stop
Once I’m satisfied with my overall composition, I put in the last of the details. If I’ve decided to silkscreen a drawing and sell the limited edition watercolors, I’ll draw the subject with less density and let the color I added later finish the work. Otherwise, I continue to enhance the textures and patterns with various dashes, dabs and marks. I may even darken some of the existing shadows by making the lines heavier, but not by filling in the space between the lines. That would cause the lines to lose their sharpness. With pen and ink, it’s important not to overdo things. I like to leave some white spaces and stop while the drawing is still fresh.
The importance of subtlety
I generally use a lot of ink when I’m creating a work of art, but in the case of Horseneck Beach (pen and ink, 18 x12).
I wanted to create silkscreen prints embellished with watercolor. When I plan to do that, I keep my lines simpler to allow the color to show.
TRY A NEW APPROACH TO THIS EASY-TO-USE MEDIUM THAT ALLOWS YOU TO CHANGE YOUR COMPOSITIONS AS YOU WORK.
By Ron Colgrove
Building light and shadow (cont’d)
You can also make changes and additions to your design as you work. For instance, you may decide to add a few more plants or suggest a human figure. You might also want to change a window into a door to vary the shapes across the front of a building. And the same holds true for textures. You may decide that a wooden wall would look more interesting if it were made of brick. These are the small—but often important—decisions you make along the way that keep the inking process exciting.
Before working right up to the edge of my drawing, I stop and evaluate my composition one last time. If I think that one area is more interesting than another I may decide to “shift” my drawing on the board to eliminate the less interesting portion while retaining my standard 12 x 18 dimensions. This technique gives me the flexibility I need to make adjustments and still end up with a clean, neat edge. By doing this, I can erase the abandoned sections of the original sketch that were never inked and frame my drawings without matting, instead of using a mat to cover up an area that didn’t work.
A Simple Approach Demonstration Item #5 of 5
PREPARING FOR THE FINISH. Although I didn’t make any major changes in the placement of the drawing on the page, I did make a few minor adjustments to the house by cutting off a few feet to make room for the trees and added a few more darks. After I inked in the last of the details, I had a giclée made of Pleasant View Road (pen and ink, 18 x 12). This allowed me to keep the original pen and ink drawing intact, and to make watercolor paper prints or canvas prints at a later time.
TRY A NEW APPROACH TO THIS EASY-TO-USE MEDIUM THAT ALLOWS YOU TO CHANGE YOUR COMPOSITIONS AS YOU WORK.
By Ron Colgrove
Building light and shadow
When inking in your drawing, pay close attention to the highlight and shadow shapes you indicated in your initial sketch. Treat the objects surrounding the light areas with special care so there’s a clear transition between highlights and objects. For example, if a wall is peeking through an opening in a tree, deliberately render the leaves surrounding the open area to look more realistic. When inking in the shadows, hold the pen almost vertically and lightly outline the overall shadow shapes with a fine line. Then fill in the shapes with vertical strokes. By doing this, the texture of the surface beneath the shadow shows through and causes the shadow to appear somewhat transparent. This is more interesting than having a completely black cast shadow.
A Simple Approach Demonstration Item #4 of 5
DEVELOPING SHAPES AND SHADOWS. I continued to
develop the pen and ink drawing, putting in more branches and leaves in front of the house, plus a small tree in front of the door. I invented panes of glass in the door to add more contrast to this area. Then I started to indicate cast shadows under the rooflines and from the trees, using only vertical lines and I put the darkest darks in the foliage by filling in alternating white spaces in the shadows. This gave the drawing a realistic shadow pattern of lights and darks.
TRY A NEW APPROACH TO THIS EASY-TO-USE MEDIUM THAT ALLOWS YOU TO CHANGE YOUR COMPOSITIONS AS YOU WORK.
By Ron Colgrove
Beginning to ink
I use only one pen—a Hunt Crow Quill No. 102 flexible dip pen—and India ink to create the final pen and ink drawing. I prefer to start in the approximate center of the image, working on the foreground objects first and moving progressively outward to the background objects.
When you’re drawing, hold the pen at the far end (away from the point) for a freer feel. This type of pen can be an expressive instrument, like a brush, so vary your marks and line widths for interest. To make wide, dark strokes, press down with your pen. To leave a fine line, hold the pen almost vertically so it doesn’t catch on the surface as much. Try dotting, dabbing and hatching for texture, but don’t use a straightedge to draw straight lines—they’ll stand out like a sore thumb. Instead, do them freehand so that the “wiggles” are compatible with the rest of the lines in your drawing. If you need a long straight line in ink, turn your paper so that the line is vertical and “pull” the dip pen toward you with a steady pressure and pace. Every 10-15 minutes, use an X-Acto knife to scrape the dried ink from the inner and outer edges of your pen nib.
A Simple Approach Demonstration Item #3 of 5
INKING IN THE FIRST LINES. After tracing my sketch onto 100 percent rag illustration board, I started drawing in India ink using a Hunt Crow Quill No. 102 dip pen. I pressed the pen down firmly to create bold strokes, and I lightened the pressure to make thin lines. I even turned the pen sideways. I’ll do anything to create an interesting line. I started with the large tree and the small branches that overlap the house so I could adjust how much of the building would show through.