Line Exercise

Terminology

All terms can be found in Mary Stewart’s Launching the Imagination: A Comprehensive Guide to Two-Dimensional Design Fifth Edition.

Line-a point in motion, a series of adjacent points, a connection between points, or an implied connection between points.

Orientation- the line’s horizontal, vertical or diagonal position

Direction- the implied movement of a line

Continuity- linear flow

Actual lines- describe forms simply and eloquently

Contour lines- define the edges of a form and suggest three-dimensionality

Gesture drawing- captures essential action rather than describing every anatomical detail

Volume summary- communicates information using basic volumes, type of line drawing

Calligraphic lines- add more energy to a drawing or design

Organizational lines- create a loose skeleton which an artist can build a composition; drawings can be presented as themselves or provide the framework for elaborate compositions