LINE
A mark that results from energy or movement
Line
Line in art is the result of media in motion. A line can be straight or curvilinear, short or long, thick or thin. Many lines together can be parallel, cross-hatched, tangled or overlapped.
Line can be used to describe an objects shape by following its outline. The outline lets the viewer know where the object ends and the rest of the world begins.. Line can also be used to show form by following the contours of an object. These contour lines not only describe the form of the object, but can be used to add value.
The special character of a line comes from pressure and release from the hand or tool that created it. Thick or thin lines can affect the way we perceive space in a work of art. Lines can show an artists personality and reveal their intentions within the work. They are one of the many ways we unlock the meaning of a work of art.
One way of beginning to understand line is to look at the difference between descriptive or expressive lines.
Click the link below to watch a short video about the concept of line in art.
Descriptive Lines
Descriptive lines are lines that conform to the actual object or form. They are used by artists to separate specific shapes and forms from other things within a composition. Depending on how they are used they can also add space, volume, mass, and texture to the work. It may help to think of these lines as an attempt at visual “facts”.
Contour vs Outline
Outlines and Contour lines are the two main types of descriptive lines.
Outlines are lines that describe the outermost edge of an object or form. They will flatten out a three dimensional form and are often used create symbols and shapes. Most beginning drawing students will create thick overworked outlines. This is product of intense looking and observational research. Depending on your intended outcome with the drawing varying the thickness and value of the lines often makes a more interesting drawing.
Contour lines are lines that are used to describe both the inside and outside of a form. They can be used like a topographical map to describe every change that takes places within the form. Think about running a pencil over the palm of your hand and how its direction and elevation changes based on the underlining structure of the bones and tissues. Contour lines attempt to describe these changes.
Cross Contour Lines
Cross contour lines are multiple contour lines that reveal an items surface characteristics. These lines can show form, value, and define space of an object.
Expressive Lines
Expressive lines are lines which carry emotional content instead of descriptive. They are employed by artists with an intention of reaching beyond the analytical to the intuitive or emotional. This can be done by using different variations of marks, different directional lines, and different line weights.
Line Variation
Line Variation refers to all the different ways an artist can create or make a mark that can be used in a composition. Artists build up a visual language through the type of marks they employ. Like your own handwriting each artist tends to have their individual way of making marks.
Example
Notice the amount of different types of marks used in this Van Gogh drawing.
The marks are made not only to describe a place analytically but to give the viewer the feel of the specific place!
Line Directions
Different directional lines can carry different meanings and compositional effects. It is very important to pay attention to the main large directional lines in a work as they carry a strong effect on the overall composition.
Vertical lines: strength, stability, authority, and growth.
Horizontal lines: calm, peace, passiveness
Diagonal lines: movement, action, drama
Implied Lines
Implied lines are suggested lines that are created by the position of shapes and objects within the composition. These can influence the way the viewers eye moves through the work and can be used to create points of focus.
Psychological Lines
A Psychological line is created by a mental or perceptual connection. (Ex: When a character or figure points or looks at another inside the composition.) The viewer can be moved around the work through these unconnected lines visually.
The gaze is a term that is crafted when the figure within the work looks back at the viewer. This can turn a passive objective subject into an active implicative one. It shows the viewer that the subject is aware of the viewers presence.
Finally: We Read Lines
Things to keep in mind when looking at a work of art:
Are the lines:
- Geometric: straight with sharp angles
- Organic: curved
- Descriptive: depicting an object
- Expressive: conveying an emotion
- Bold outlines
- Cross-hatching
- Are the lines implied by a change in color?
- What major directional lines can you see?
- What effect do the lines have on the work?
- How do the lines in the work effect my feelings about it? And how I read the work?
Alabastron (perfume bottle). late 6th–5th century B.C. Glass. Greek, Eastern Mediterranean. The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Vincent van Gogh. Street in Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer. ce. July 15, 1888. Reed pen, quill, and ink over chalk on wove paper (backed with wove paper). Dutch. The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Joseph Mallord William Turner. Fishing Boats with Hucksters Bargaining for Fish. ce. 1837/38. Oil on canvas. England. Art Institute of Chicago.
Shadi Ghadirian. Untitled from the Qajar Series. ce..1998. Photographs Silver bromide print. Iran. LACMA
Mrs. James Ward Thorne (Designer). E-29: English Roman Catholic Church in the Gothic Style, 1275-1300. ce.1932–1937. Miniature room, mixed media. United States. Art Institute of Chicago.