Making Marks Project: Final Thoughts (check and log)

How did holding your pen or pencil in a different way affect your drawing?

I found there was a big difference in the result from changing the way I hold a pen or pencil. Holding one at the end enables a flowing, expressive style but is harder to control. Holding a pencil at close to the tip enables much more control and hence fine detail can be drawn but I feel it can inhibit a free-flowing style.

Which drawing tools suited the different mark-making techniques you used?

Charcoals were excellent for shading and creating bold strokes. These suited themselves to thicker lines and big dots. Fine pens and pencils were great for hatching and thin lines. Stippling was easier with slightly softer pencils and thicker pens, e.g. felt tips and medium size pens.

Did you find that any marks or tools you used matched particular emotions or feelings? Did one convey calm and another frenzy?

I found using fine pens and pencils to produce scribbles felt very intense and staccato-like. Charcoal was very smooth and hence laid-back to use, so matched a feeling of calmness and tranquility. In contrast though, it could also be used in quite an intense way with its tone producing dark, foreboding pictures.

How did the introduction of colour (soft pastels, Conte crayons) affect your mark-making?

Using colour adds another tool. I found I was relying more on the colour and less on the marks to produce effects. Experimenting with colour I found interesting differences between using shades of the same colour range and contrasting colours to add tone. Shades within the same range produced a very naturally pleasing look, whereas the contrasts achieved the same purpose but looked artificial.

Which of these experiments have you found most interesting and rewarding?

It is difficult to pick just one as I have found all of the experiments to be useful but I have highlighted three :

‘Trying new media’ was very useful as I tried using ink, something I have never used before in drawing.

‘Using charcoal’ was great fun as I love using charcoal and seeing the effects it produces.

‘Line and other marks’ showed me the variety of effects that can be produced by a line and how emotion can be conveyed through this simple mark.

Making Marks project: Trying new media

Drawing tools used:

Dipping ink pen with inks, fine, medium and wide nibs

Oil and soft pastels

My method:

Similar to previous exercise, I experimented with patterns and tried to create the feeling of intensity and smoothness.

I spent some time working with the inks as I have never used them before.

My thoughts:

I loved using the dipping pen and inks, especially the finest nib. I found this to be very suitable for drawing and creating most marks necessary. It was easy to draw smooth lines, produce dots and create different tonal effects with hatching. The only problem was having to replenish the ink (dip it in ink) frequently which makes drawing a long line, either jagged or smooth, difficult. Adding water produced a nice spattered effect and would create drama I feel.

Trying new media - using inks

The oil pastels seemed to produce very specific results. I only drew with them and did not experiment with rubbing or adding water. Used in this way they produce excellent texture but its hard to create a smooth finish. This probably would change if used in a different way.

The soft pastels were similar to the oil pastels but produced a less grainy texture and smoother lines.

Trying new media - oil and soft pastels

In conclusion, experimenting with these materials has enlarged my tool kit. I would definitely experiment with inks in drawings as they are so versatile and use pastels for texture and drama.

Making Marks project: Line and other marks

Drawing tools used:

4B, HB 2H pencils

Ballpoint, felt tip medium drawing and brush pens

My method:

Firstly I drew boxes filled with patterns to explore how to create texture, tone and intensity using the three pencils.

I then developed these ideas by filling boxes with continuous lines. Moving on, I used the pens to explore similar ideas.

My thoughts:

Smoothness was achieved best with the felt tip using sweeping curves.

Line and other marks - pens

The feeling of intensity was achieved I felt through jagged lines and lines being close together.

Line and other marks - pencils

Texture was created with cross hatching, other repeated patterns and broken lines. Interestingly, I found most patterns seemed to work as texture if they were repeated.

Line and other marks - repetitive patterns

Bold, strong lines were produced by the thicker pens.

This exercise has shown me how an emotion can be conveyed through the use of the most simple mark, a line. This is something I feel should never be overlooked.

Making Marks project: Using charcoal

Drawing tools used:

Thin, medium and thick charcoal willow sticks

Medium charcoal pencil

Putty rubber

My method:

I experimented with drawing different lines in charcoal. This varied between straight and curved lines and thin and thick lines. I held it both as a pencil and flat against the paper. I experimented with charcoal broken into small pieces.

I compared the various shades produced by the different sticks and pencil. I also tried drawing patterns. I used a putty rubber over both a shaded area and a patterned area to see the effects.

Using charcoal - using different thicknesses and a charcoal pencil

My thoughts:

The thicker charcoal made bold sweeping strokes and really dark strokes which I loved. I feel I could be really expressive with this medium.

I liked the way the putty rubber pulled out some of the tone but left some texture. It created a rather pleasing effect.

Using charcoal - different patterns and strokes and using a putty rubber

The grainier texture was achieved by using the flat edge of the charcoal, whilst more defined lines came from the using it like a pencil. (Very fine lines could be achieved by forming a point).

In conclusion I much prefer using sticks of willow charcoal rather than compressed sticks or charcoal pencils as it feels more natural and expressive.  Charcoal could be used for flowing lines to indicate movement  and to create drama (through tonal variations) and texture. Examples I can think of include tree bark and a wall (texture), water and contours of the landscape (flowing lines) and clouds and sky (tonal variation and drama). I love the medium as it is so expressive and creates a great variety of effects.

Making Marks project: Mark-making techniques

Drawing tools used:

HB, 2H and 4B pencils

Medium drawing pen, brush pen, felt tip and ball point pen

thick and thin willow charcoal

coloured pencils

My method:

In the first part of the exercise, I experimented with stippling and hatching techniques for each of the different tools to compare the effects from each. I used the same techniques for each to give me a good idea of the differences produced by each tool.

In the second part I drew a collection of 3-D shapes (e.g. spheres, cylinders and cones) to see how each technique (stippling, hatching and cross-hatching) could be applied to each form. I kept the forms consistent again to help me see differences between the techniques.

Lastly, I used both varying shades of a colour and contrasting colours to see the different results.

My thoughts and comments:

It has become clear that hatching is best done with fine tools, e.g. harder pencils, finer drawing pens. Felt-tips, charcoal and softer pencils were much better used for stippling.

Mark-making techniques - hatching and stippling with pencils and pens

Hatching produced a very pleasing effect for the straight-edged forms, e.g. cuboid, cylinder and cone. I found the intensity of the hatching can be controlled to produce a denser or lighter shaded area. Closer hatching produces denser areas. Hatching could either be in straight lines or curved ones to produce the spherical shape.

Mark-making techniques - hatching and stippling to indicate form

Stippling is not something that I have used much in the past so it was interesting to experiment. Denser tones were produced by using bigger dots or placing the dots closer together. Dots that were further apart produced lighter tones. I found the technique of stippling to be less restrictive and I think would prove useful in most scenarios.

My experiments in adding colour may have been slightly away from the exercise but I tried to test the difference in using contrasting versus shades of the same colour using the techniques of hatching and stippling. I was pleased with the results of using various shades of the same colour, e.g. dark and light green. This looked quite natural especially coupled with hatching. The contrasting method worked to a degree but looked more artificial. It did indicate tone though as long as I used dark and light contrasting colours. The same effect was seen both using stippling and hatching.

Mark-making techniques - adding colour

In conclusion, although I stuck to some pretty basic 3-D forms, I feel that in essence most things are made up of these so the exercise was worth doing. Completing this exercise together with my studies of John Piper’s work (see related post under Artists and their work) has helped me to see how to achieve different tones in shaded areas using techniques I have not used. I look forward to putting some of these ideas into practice.

Making Marks project : Doodling

I found this an interesting exercise although at first reading I was a bit skeptical!

Drawing tools used:

HB, H and 7B pencils

Ball point, medium drawing and felt tip pens

Medium willow charcoal

My Method:

I used A3 paper to produce doodles with the different drawing materials using both fast, flowing lines and slower, more careful ones.

I also completed two A3 sheets of doodles influenced by the topics water and buildings. I thought these were a good choice as they were completely different things to think about.

My Thoughts:

The first part of the exercise gave me the opportunity to experiment with different lines and shading. It soon became clear that the tools are good for different jobs. Shading was much better accomplished with the charcoal and pencils. The felt tip was great for bold, striking lines and the other pens were more suitable for thin lines and hence detailed work. Of course, these are not set rules but observations and indeed could easily be broken!

Doodling

The doodles produced by thinking about water and buildings produced very different results. I found myself drawing flowing lines with sweeping motions for the water. The charcoal, felt pen and softer pencil were great for this. The  ripples were achieved using the finer drawing materials, e.g. H pencil. In contrast, thinking of buildings produced straight lines with shading effects. The charcoal was great for texture with the harder pencil and the drawing pen for architectural details.

Doodling - water

Doodling - buildings

I was surprised how much I learned from this exercise and I can see how doodling can be a great way to explore ideas. It really gets the creative process going…!

Making Marks project: Holding pens and pencils exercise

Drawing tools used:

HB, 4B and 2H pencils

Writing pen, brush pen and fine drawing pen

Medium charcoal pencil, medium charcoal stick and medium willow charcoal stick

Soft, medium and hard graphite sticks

Soft and oil pastels

My method:

I used each drawing tool as suggested in the exercise, e.g. holding the tool at the end and then at the tip and then noted the contrast. I also tried using each tool with softer and harder pressure and noted again the differences. I repeated this process for each tool to help me understand the different effects produced by different holding techniques using different tools. I am hoping this will be a useful reference for the future.

My thoughts:

The difference in pressure used with the pencils varied depending on the softness of the pencil. The 4B pencil produced great contrast in the darkness of the marks possible from light (light touch) to very dark (hard pressure). This effect was not so noticeable with the harder pencil (2H). Holding the pencils at the end produced light strokes and shading but was difficult to control. This technique was good for shading but not so good for detailed work. It did feel more expressive though when used with the softer pencil and the larger paper.

Holding pens and pencils - HB pencil - contrasts of holding at tip and end of pencil and using hard and soft pressure

Holding pens and pencils - 4B - contrast of soft and hard pressure

With all the drawing tools, the harder pressure resulted in darker marks and thicker lines. It was harder to see contrasts though with the writing pen and to a degree the fine drawing pen. The brush pen highlighted the differences nicely.

Holding pens and pencils - contrast of writing, brush and fine drawing pens and contrast of holding at the tip and end and using different pressures.

The charcoals were very expressive and big differences in thickness of line and darkness can be seen when used in different ways. The willow stick was the easiest to hold (unlike the pressed charcoal stick) and could be used to make very flowing lines. It was a bit difficult to produce precise lines though and I imagine would be harder to use on very detailed work.

Holding pens and pencils - using the charcoal sticks and the willow charcoal. The different effects of pressure used and how it is held can be seen

The graphite sticks were harder to hold than the pencils but may be easier for shading. The softer graphite was easier to use and produced less scratchy and more textured marks.

The oil and soft pastels were similar in the contrasts produced in the marks. The oil pastels felt smoother to use and produced a more grainier texture than the soft pastels.

Conclusions…

I am amazed at the variety of textures, line width, shading and depth of colour that can be achieved by holding tools in different ways. I am beginning to see how some tools could be used to good effect. For example, shading techniques are easier using the a tool at the end, whereas, holding it at the tip affords more control but perhaps results in a loss in flowing expressiveness. Depth of colour can be achieved by the pressure and the degree of depth depends on the material used. I have been surprised to see how holding a tool at the end seems to make me feel more expressive and have greater freedom. This has been a very valuable exercise and has not only helped me acquaint myself with my tools better but also learn how to produce different effects with them.