How to draw with a pen - pen drawing

I have been using the same pen since 2004 now. Quite often I have tested other tools,but always came back to my good old one.

This version looks a bit fancy and that is of course not a disadvantage. I do not want to promote a specific brand here. But for those who are interested to know more, here is the link to the producers website Jean-Pierre Lepine

Reasons why I use (this) pen:

1. The pen is small (length closed )and I can put it in my trousers pocket without trouble. In other words I can have it with me everywhere.

2. It can be used in a short version, without the cap attached or in long version with the cap attached. This allows different grips. As the cap can be screwed to the open pen it can´t get lost outdoors that easy.

3. It uses a standard ink cartridge which is available almost everywhere. The ink is not expensive.

4. The nib of pens is very individual. I like this one because it produces a wide range of lines with different character. Also it allows movements with the pen in almost every angle and direction.
The nib of this pen type is relatively coarse and I did not like it from the beginning. Sometimes it seems to me like a little donkey that wants to have it´s own way. But meantime I know it's tricks and appreciate them as additional possibilities for expression.

1.)The biggest disadvantage of pens is their ink. At present there is no pen available that can use lightfast ink (india ink).

Technical pens like Staedtler and others are no comparison to a pen with it's typical nib. I have tried a number of these and came always to the same conclusion: not for me !

The reason is that pens with lightfast ink always produce a "dead" uniform line. Plus many of them are exhausted after short time and drawing with them regularly becomes quite expensive.

Because of the low lightfastness of the pen ink I use the pen only in my sketchbooks,their pages are not exposed to daylight for longer periods.

2.) The ink for pens usually is not waterproof. Some artists like to work with water colors in combination with pen and therefore use a waterproof ink (Noodlers).

I have used inks in different colors and finally decided to use Brilliant black PELIKAN. I recommend to test various brands until you find the one that suits you best.

I have choosen black ink because blue ink does not allow really dark areas. Also black and white is much easier to scan/reproduce and to handle in our digital world.

Colors like red,green and purple will fade very fast according to my experinece and therefore I have not considered them further.

Black inks contain black pigments often carbon. Depending on the producers recipe the ink might flow good,not so good or even NOT. This depends on your pen too. I have a pen that works only with blue inks and will not release the black !

These images show some of the different possibilities to hold a pen for drawing. Depending on this the character of your lines will change a lot according to more or less precise control,pressure and angle to the paper. Start to experiment to find your favorite grips. To produce very fine line I hold the pen with nib upside down for example

There are many ways to represent shadows in a pen drawing. All those methods have the same basis. In order to shade an area with pen the marks have to cover the white paper more or less.

1. Stippling techniques
One can achive shading with little dots or short pen marks. In fact this method imitates the industrial offest printing method. If you look at a newspaper with a magnifying glass you will understand.

parallel and cross hatches
The second method uses hatches, parallel or crossing ones. Those can be applied in several layers. That way one can achieve cleary defined tonalities. For example light tone is hatches in one direction, middle tone is two layers of cross hatches, darkest tonality is three laxers of cross hatches. The white paper and a fully with ink covered black paper would makr the extremes in a drawing. Sticking to this very simple method you have already 5 different tonalities at hand

3. Free marks and combinations
Some draughtsmen create patterns of very free marks combining lines and dots in their drawing or even in one area of shading. van Gogh was a master to create shade with marks that represented the structure and materiality of the subject itself. The plein air ink drawing below is inspired by van Gogh.

Drawing the urban landscape



A full preview of all pen drawings in the book is also published on Squidoo:
Drawing the urban landscape

All of my drawing lenses:
How to draw a tree
Landscape drawing - Improve your skills
How to draw a pine tree
How to draw deciduous trees (mostly apple trees:).)
How to draw coniferous trees (some spruce trees)
How to draw buildings and houses
Drawing the urban landscape
Draw people in a landscape
The self portrait - somewhat of an adventure
Face drawing -how to draw a face
How to draw eyes
Artists sketchbooks - little nothings turn into big somethings
Sketching gear - a guide for beginners
How to draw with a pen
How to draw a straight line