Creative explorations Vol #10: Line

A sketchbook/art journal prompt to support your art and creative practice.

Photo by Marty O’Neill on Unsplash

Creative Explorations are themed around a prompt that you can explore in your own art/creative practice over the coming weeks. Prompts will be sent out on the first Friday of every month. I hope this month’s prompt sparks your creativity!

Horizontal, vertical, thick, thin, zig-zags, scribbles, curves, spirals — lines come in various forms and different thicknesses. They convey a sense of energy and motion, of depth and simplicity. Sometimes, they are invisible, or implied. You may not see any lines in a painting, but they are there in the way the elements on the page are arranged. Horizon lines are just one example of an implied or invisible line.

Lines are also an essential element in art forms like Zentangles and neurographical art. By combining different kinds of lines together, you can make some beautifully intricate patterns or convey a range of emotions.

This month, let’s explore this basic element of art in our sketchbooks.

Resources + ideas

Blind contour drawing: Blind contour drawings are one of the first exercises we do when we start to learn how to draw. It’s also a fun exercise to return to from time to time. If you need a reminder on what it is, here are the instructions that form the basis of blind contour drawing, from Nicolaïdes’ 1941 book, The Natural Way to Draw: A Working plan for Art Study:

Focus your eye on some point—any point will do—along the contour of the model. Place the point of your pencil on the paper. Imagine that your pencil point is touching the model instead of the paper. Begin to slowly follow the contour of the model across the surface of the page. Be guided more by the sense of touch than by sight.

Musical lines: All you need for this exercise are a brush and ink and a few large pieces of paper. Put on some music. Give yourself a moment or so to just listen to the song. Take a few deep breaths and get present. Then let your hand dance across the page, in time with the music. What kinds of lines do you come up with?

Zendoodles: Zendoodles — which are essentially similar to Zentangles, but without some of the confinements of a Zentangle — can be a lovely way to slow down and de-stress. There are tons of tangle patterns available online — a quick Google search will throw up a plethora of options. Here’s a resource that’s great for beginners.

Spiral in, spiral out: Explore using spirals and text in your journal. To start, draw a large spiral, starting in the center of your page. Next, follow the line and start writing. You can explore stream-of-consciousness writing, write to a journal prompt, or just let all your thoughts spill onto the page.

Follow the line: I came across Shantell Martin’s stunning line-based art via a prompt shared on Isolation Journals. If you haven’t seen her work, you can visit her website or Instagram. The idea behind her work is seemingly simple: Start with a line. Follow it. See where it takes you. Watch this video on what it means to free the line and this video where Shantell explores the DNA of a line.

Lines and shapes: Lines and shapes combined together can make for rather interesting abstract art pieces. Try using a mix of strong, bold lines, thinner, more whimsical lines, and small, scratchy lines using a variety of materials. Add some shapes using acrylic paints. Etch some more lines into the wet paint. Play and experiment and see what happens! Watch this video for some inspiration.

I look forward to seeing your take on this prompt! You can email your finished pieces to me on shinjinim@substack.com or share them on Notes if you use the Substack app. If you share on Instagram, tag me @moderngypsy.in

Like this prompt? Share it with your friends and invite them into our virtual studio. If you’re on the Substack app, you can tap on the like button or restack to Notes to let me know you enjoyed this post.