Making marks

Holding pens and pencils

This first exercise involved holding pens & pencils in different ways to experiment with making marks and lines on the paper.

In my sketchbook I filled a page using a variety of tools, charcoal, pencils, gel pens, colour pencils.  I tried holding them in different ways and sometimes found it difficult to retain control over my strokes.

Dangling the pen over the paper tended to produce light uncontrolled strokes, as it was difficult to apply pressure to the pen.  When holding the pen at the tip control was easier but not particularly comfortable.

I took an A1 piece of paper and worked up some marks using large gestural strokes.  It felt very free and easy as I was not trying to contain the pen to create a particular shape.  I varied the pressure usually from hard to soft.  On such large paper it is easy to create large sweeping lines and circular 

Doodling

Here is an example of doodling using lots of different mediums.  I was listening to music whilst producing this and not really thinking of anything in particular.  I love doodling in general and it was enriching to use some many different pens and tools.

The next example of doodling was more precise with a few recognisable shapes and themes but again a just let the pens flow and take them where they wanted.  This is an interesting exercise just to experiment with each medium and how to make different effects.

The drawing below I did as a title page for my sketchbook.  It took a long time but I really enjoy this kind of doodling.

Mark-making techniques

When using the different pens and pastel etc.. it was interesting to note the effects that can be created.  Gel pens and sharp, hard pencils are good for hatching and fine line.  Stippling is also effective but shading a continuous light to dark is much more challenging.  Oil pastels are great for blending and producing blocks of colour but difficult to use for more detailed, precise work.  In these two pages I tried to use as many different tools in as many different ways to evaluate what technique works with each tool.

Charcoal is bold and messy but difficult for stippling or very fine detail.  Mixing media together produces another set of results.

 

 

Using charcoal

This first piece of mark making with charcoal is on an A1 piece of paper and I experimented by using the side, tip, corner of the charcoal to vary the effects.  I love the flat tonal marks and also the thin, grass like likes.  I hadn’t realised that I could get so many effects from the one medium and I discovered a pleasure that surprised me.  I guess I had always been a little afraid of charcoal and by starting simply it took some of the fear away.

On this next piece I tried to be as versatile as possible, each time trying to think how I could use charcoal in a drawing. I will try to mix it with ink and pencil as I think they could complement each other.

Line and other marks

Here I used different mediums together to create different effects and then decided to experiment using ink with twigs, bamboo, chinese brushes, sponges.  I loved this exercise and the sweeping freedom of it.  I tried some resist with a candle before the ink and also splatting ink on the paper and then blowing with a straw.  This has been a fun start to this course and immensely useful as a reference for different mediums and their effects.

     

Research point – Van Gogh

Van Gogh was a mater of mark making managing to create feeling of movement and gesture through his line and brush strokes.  Here is a copy of one of his outdoor scenes and I found this actually more difficult to do than I had anticipated.  I am left handed and sometimes the shading just doesn’t go in the right direction for me.  

I tried another of his drawing this time with permanent pen and ink.  

 

Check and Log

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

Holding the tip of the pen, I found it difficult to maintain control and apply pressure.  This maybe useful for a loose layer of light colour or for light shading.  Holding charcoal and conté crayons sideways enabled me to create lovely shades of block colour.  Holding pencils almost sideways was good to shading thicker blocks of colour as keeping the pencil upright was used for stippling.

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

Gel pens, sharp pencils, pens for fine lines, stippling, hatching.  Charcoal and pastels for blocks of colour and shading and blending.  Ink for sweeping, flowing movements.  I found that many of the tools overlap in their use and can be manipulated in many different ways.

Did you find that any marks or tools matched particular emotions or feelings?

I found that the ink with large brushes and sponges evoked spontaneity, freedom and general well-being.  Charcoal was versatile for me, it can be dark and almost threatening but also calming.  Fine pens can be quite intense and almost stress making.

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

 I found this led to more creativity and expression.  I was able to experiment by mixing mediums and therefore create different marks and effects.  

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

I especially enjoyed the charcoal and ink mark-making and found that I learnt a lot from experimenting with them.  I also found it interesting to work on a large scale which forced me to loosen up and become more expressive.