More on Line

 Ah, continuing with my love for line. A couple of years ago, I took an online art class that included doing large doodles using a brush and india ink.  At first, I was very reluctant to work large (say 18 x 24 inches), and I had never done much with a brush and ink.  But, after doing one or two paintings, I found the process very freeing. I love using a brush to create large, gestural strokes. I love the way that a brush with ink creates an imperfect quality of line, unlike a pen, pencil, marker with all the same width of line. I could begin to control the brush to get wider lines, thinner lines, big expressive lines-- and not obsess about doing a “perfect”, tight, small drawing. I forced myself to work quickly, not think too much, and just keep my hand moving doodling, filling in the space of the page with line.  I firmly believe that the more you do, the better you will become.  I recently filmed this process and posted my first Youtube video. The video takes about 5 minutes to watch, but in real time took about 30 minutes to create.  I really didn’t have a clear plan before I began the painting, but a vague idea of painting a vase with flowers, but each stroke I put on the page led to the next idea, and the next…