History, Debate, and a Love Letter to a Fave Technique
The top 5 reasons I heart dots
- It's uber zen. Okay, so I'm one of those people who can get totally neurotic with just about anything. In drawing, this definitely translates to an obsession with my lines. Are they the right thickness? The right curve? The right angle? With stippling, I can trick my neurotic side into going mute for a little while. It's just one little tenth-of-a-millimeter dot, I remind it; no-one will notice if it isn't just right. Works (almost) every time.
- It's anti-artist's-block. Okay, so I'm cheating a little because this relates to the zen-ness, but I think it deserves its own mention too. When I'm totally intimidated by the blank page staring up at me, a dot isn't nearly as intimidating as a line. If I can just get myself to start randomly tapping dots onto the page then pretty soon the artist's block has disappeared and I've got half a drawing done.
- It can be unplanned. Sometimes, like with artist's block, this is helpful in overcoming intimidation. But sometimes I'm not at all put off by the page, it's just I want to play with pen and paper and don't know why. Just start scattering dots and, when an image or pattern seems to be emerging, go with it. Yeah, okay, so this sounds a little kooky, but it's also quite fun, I promise :)
- It creates beautiful details. I can stare at a well-composed pointillist piece for hours. In part this is because pointillist pieces take a lot of time (perhaps the main downside to this technique), and this time translates into details. Want to see what I'm talking about? Look at the overall and close-up images of my piece Ocean Cat to see an example.
- It's fun!. Don't take my word for it; give it a shot yourself. Don't take it too seriously or go in with too many pre-conceived ideas and I bet you'll discover that tapping a pen on paper is far more entertaining than you might have imagined.
Pointillism/Stippling: History and Pointers
Pointillism and stippling are the practices of using dots rather than lines or strokes to create an image. Pointillism is generally understood to refer to painting and stippling to pen work (athough my art teachers tended to use them interchangeably, and hence I tend to do so as well--my apologies to the purists out there).In painting, pointillism is probably most notably associated with Seurat, who created the famous "Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte," and with Neo-Impressionism. I don't really know of any famous associations with stippling (if you do, please share!). Wikipedia has a decent, albeit short, entry on pointillism and one on stippling that you might check out if you're interested in learning more about the origins of these techniques.
Since I'm an artist who works primarily with pen and ink, I don't know as much about all the color theory that pointillism involves in painting (though it's interesting stuff, if you're into that kinda thing). With pen and ink there are a few things I've picked up that might be helpful, though. One is that it's generally best to use a quality art pen, like a Staedtler, so that you have consistent ink distribution and permanence. The other is that I generally find it best to just use one pen size for the whole project, unless I'm deliberately experimenting with creating different layers in the image through the different pen sizes. I'll upload an example image of what I'm talking about here as soon as I find (or make) one--unless any of my lovely readers have an example first?
Pointillism vs. Stippling--Which Term Do You Prefer?
As I mentioned, my art teachers used the terms almost interchangeably. To them, it was all about the dots, regardless of medium. But wikipedia definitely draws a distinction. So what do you think, and why?
Should pointillism and stippling be discussed as two mostly separate techniques or is it cool to use the terms interchangeably?
Fetching blurbs now... please stand byThere's a big difference. Keep 'em separated.
Q. says:
I've been doing pointillism/stippling for 15 years now. When I learned of the technique in art class I was told it was called stippling even though I was using color. It wasn't until recently that I learned that stippling more specifically refers to black and white pen and ink work while pointillism refers more so to paintings created using brush strokes of colored dots. Personally, I like to be more specific so I like to say I "stipple" or that I create "stippling art", but I feel weird calling myself a stippler or stippling artist. To say that I'm a "pointillist" sounds cool but it sounds to much like it relates to some kind of philosophical theory. I generally just say that I'm a pen and ink artist who specializes in the technique of stippling.
Posted November 17, 2009
punkerkas says:
I didn't even know the difference before. Yet within the art world there are so many different terms and each relates to a certain style. So I say keep them separated.
Posted August 21, 2008
The_Homeopath says:
As a non-illustrator/painter pointillism means something very specific to me, whereas stippling is more of a word that can be used in many different ways.
Posted June 28, 2008
Gimmee a break--dots are dots. Why make a fuss?
Nat J. Leu says:
I mean definition :P
Posted November 12, 2009
Nat J. Leu says:
They are pretty much one and the same. The only definition is by definition in which pointillism is the art and theory of marking dots on a surface to produce an image, while stippling is merely the immediate and verb form of pointillism (the more general term), or if you must, a stippling (the more immediate term). Whether it's black or white, or coloured, it shouldn't make a difference. I suppose people generally associate stippling more to the black and white images because it's more technical rather than a general view of pointillism.
I hope what I said made sense. :)
Posted November 12, 2009
Huia says:
Kia ora.
To check out Rei Hamon's pointallist work go to: hamonartnz.co.nz
If are lucky enough to come across one of his 2 books, enjoy!
Huia Hamon (The late Rei's grandadughter NZ)
Posted April 30, 2009
PaintDog says:
I'm a stippler, a die-hard pen & ink fan, so I've always used the word "stipple". I was aware of the technical difference between stipple and pointillism, but it really doesn't matter to me.
Posted October 05, 2008
PaintDog says:
I'm definitely a stippler - a die-hard pen and ink fan, so I use the word "stipple". Hardly ever use "pointillism", but it doesn't bug me if they're used interchangeably.
Posted October 05, 2008
Some of My Pointillist Designs on CafePress
What are your favorites?
Tell me your favorites--favorite art books, favorite techniques, favorite artists, favorite pieces--let your opinions be known.
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Reply
- Amanda Amanda Mar 11, 2009 @ 2:53 pm
- I use paint and brush to make the color dots instead of pen. I did an assignment once where I created stencil shapes and painted them with guache. Then I did pointillism around them%u2026I have no training or expertise. I just put dots in a color. Then fill in the spots and fill in the spots until there is very little space left. What I really liked about my first painting like this was that I made my spots tear-drop shaped and made them go in certain directions. In the end as a result- there was a motion and flow to the color in the pic. I wish I could show you but it takes me like a year to get a photo on the pc. Lol. What's so odd and wonderful to me is that while my painting is full of details- it's hardly planned. I start with a simple plan (shapes ) and then let the rest flow around the shapes%u2026..today I'm painting trees (my shapes ) and their lined up down a river on both sides%u2026the river is pointillism style%u2026I haven't gotten past the river. Lol. It's looking great though. I used all kinds of blues and now I've put specks of red and yellow next to each other to get that vibrating color effect%u2026Ok..I'll shut up now. Lol. Can anyone hear me?
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- serenesea serenesea Jan 1, 2009 @ 3:01 pm
- as a proud Kiwi, I would love you to check out the work of the late Rei Hamon, fantastic!!
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- PaintDog PaintDog Oct 5, 2008 @ 4:02 am
- Stippling is insane - although enjoyable, it certainly takes a certain mentality to do it! And I mean that in a good way, 'cause I'm a detail freak. But have you tried working on scratchboard yet? I worked in pen & ink on paper for many years, but then I discovered scratchboard and I love the stuff!
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- JaguarJulie JaguarJulie Sep 13, 2008 @ 2:54 pm
- I enjoy art and artists of all 'persuasions' and appreciate the talent behind pointillism -- i.e., I get the point. Art is in the eye of the beholder; being an art enthusiast, I appreciate pointillism. 5*****
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- Imagine Imagine Sep 4, 2008 @ 2:36 pm
- I am not an artist, I am a knitter. I have always been drawn to stippling, even as a child. I think I will research it more and find out what I need to start and then PLAY! Something wonderful may be in the works. Thanks
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by Rya
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