Line: confident, controlled marks
Every drawing starts as lines. A confident line describes form and direction; a hesitant, hairy line describes doubt. The goal of this lesson is control: putting a mark where you meant to, at the weight you meant.
Step by step
- Hold the pencil further back than you write with. For long lines, lock your wrist and move from the elbow or shoulder.
- Ghost the line first: hover the pencil over the paper and rehearse the movement two or three times, then commit in one stroke.
- Place two dots and connect them with a single straight stroke. Fill a page with these at different angles.
- Draw ellipses in one continuous motion, going round two or three times lightly. Practise them at several widths, from nearly circular to very thin.
- Vary pressure along one stroke: start light, press in the middle, lift at the end. This tapered line is the basis of expressive contour drawing.
- Use line weight with purpose: thinner, lighter lines for edges in light or far away; heavier lines for edges in shadow, overlaps and things close to you.
Common mistakes
- Scratching many short, feathery strokes instead of one deliberate line.
- Drawing only from the wrist, which makes long lines curve.
- Pressing hard from the very first mark, so mistakes cannot be erased.
Practice exercise
Daily 10-minute warm-up: one page of dot-to-dot straight lines, one page of ellipses inside boxes, and ten tapered curves. Date each page so you can see progress.