Cross-hatching

The Face

JenArt, Life, Pen & Ink, People

For this high school assignment, I created a large quasi-stippling piece. My subject was a young girl whose image I cut from a magazine. Although, after completion, everyone thought it was a self-portrait! Using a projector, I lightly replicated the image onto a large piece of poster board with pencil and then added the details in ink. I decided to focus on the darks and shadows and left the light areas completely white.

Every year our teacher would showcase a few pieces of art in the student hallway.  This year mine was chosen to hang in the “gallery”.  It was my first taste of showing my art to people other than my family and friends and I couldn’t have been more proud!

It was 1988 and the band Duran Duran was a huge success and wildly admired by us teenage girls! Although not intentional, this piece always reminds me of Patrick Nagel‘s artwork for the Rio album cover.

The Face
24″ x 36″ Pen & Ink on Poster Board adapted from photograph

The Jacket

JenArt, Pen & Ink
The Jacket
9″ x 12″ Pen & Ink on Bristol Board Adapted from Photograph

Closely related to Pointillism is the art of Stippling; using small dots to convey the form. Stippling is done with ink and specialty pens with various size tips to allow for different size dots. For finer detail, you use the smallest opening and space the dots farther apart.  For dark and dense areas, you use the larger pen tip and place the dots closer together.  Stippling may be done using different color ink. Sometimes an artist may add color with colored pencil after the ink has dried.