and reed pens
Bamboo and reed pens may have declined in popularity since the availability of more sophisticated pens, but many artists still use them. Their blunt, coarse and slightly irregular strokes make them ideal for bold line drawings, and their appeal often lies in the sheer pleasure that can be derived from drawing with such a ‘primitive’ instrument.
Ink for metal pens
Metal pens can be used with any type of ink – waterproof or water-soluble – because there is no mechanism to clog up. However, the nibs should be cleaned regularly under running water to prevent the ink from caking.
Making a quill pen
Use a stout, round feather, preferably goose. Trim the barbs back (1), to make the feather easier to hold. Shape the tip of the quill with a sharp knife. Make a curved, diagonal cut (2), then remove the keratin filling from the quill. Make a single cut, running up from the tip, to make a channel for ink (3).
Quill pens
Quill pens are made from the wing feathers of birds such as geese, turkeys or swans. They are often an ideal choice if you want to make fine, responsive lines. However, the nib is fragile, so they are best suited to small sketches and detailed drawings.
Technical pens
Originally designed for use by professional illustrators and designers, technical pens deliver ink down a narrow tube instead of a nib. This produces a very even line of a specific and unvarying width, regardless of the direction in which the pen is moved. The fine, fragile strokes made by technical pens are most appropriate for a controlled, graphic style of drawing. Like fountain pens, technical pens are easily portable and contain their own supply of ink. But, unlike fountain pens, the ink flow is fine and even, and lasts much longer, so you no longer have to carry bottles of ink which can break, leak or spill. The narrow tubular nibs for technical pens, available in an increasing variety of point sizes, are interchangeable within each range, and can be quickly switched.
Nib units for technical pens
For most drawings, you will need only one holder and several nib units in a range of different sizes.
Ink for technical pens
Technical pens should only be used with inks designed for them. These are usually lightfast, but are not waterproof. The ink supply is held in a reservoir and can be topped up with a dropper, or from a purpose-made filler bottle. The nibs should not be left uncovered, as the ink will dry in its channel, and they must be cleaned regularly with warm water. If the pens are not to be used for some time, they should be emptied and cleaned.
Fountain pens
Fountain pens feel much smoother to draw with than dip pens, and because they produce a steady flow of ink to the nib, they don’t need to be dipped frequently. This makes them useful for impromptu sketching. However, since fountain-pen nibs have little flexibility, it is not very easy to vary the thickness of your lines. The nib range is also quite limited.
Ink for fountain pens
To prevent them clogging, most fountain pens require non-waterproof ink, drawn into the barrel by suction through the nib. An exception to this rule is Indian ink pens, which are made specially for use with this type of ink and have a choice of two sketching nibs, graded ‘ordinary’ and ‘bold’.
Sketching pens
Also known as ‘art pens’, these combine the expressive qualities of a dip pen with the convenience of a reservoir pen. In appearance they resemble an ordinary fountain pen, but they have flexible nibs designed specially for drawing, which deliver ink smoothly to the paper via a pre-filled ink cartridge.
Filler adaptors
Coloured sketching pen cartridges
‘Art pens’also have a fillerad aptor which enables you to fill them with a range of liquid colours.
| DRAWING INKS | For monochrome drawings, Indian ink is still the favourite choice of many artists, as it is both permanent and waterproof. Sepia and blue-black inks also have their own appeal, and all can be diluted with water to produce a range of light-to-dark tones in one drawing. |
Waterproof coloured inks
Waterproof coloured inks, also called artists’ drawing inks, come in a range of about 20 colours. Waterproof inks are essential if you intend to apply a wash or tint on top of a line drawing, otherwise the linework will run. These inks are denser than non-waterproof varieties, drying to a slightly glossy finish that gives the work a precise, painted quality Unfortunately, the shellac that is added to the ink to make it waterproof also makes it clog up easily, so be sure to clean brushes and pens thoroughly after use. Never use waterproof ink in fountain pens or technical pens.
Non-waterproof coloured inks
These contain no shellac, and they are primarily used for laying washes over waterproof-ink drawings. They are fine for line drawings, too, as long as you don’t overlay them with washes. Non-waterproof inks sink into the paper more than waterproof types, and they dry to a matt finish.
Soluble inks
If you want the flexibility to be able to dissolve and blend lines, you should choose a soluble ink such as Chinese ink (see here), which is also more delicate than Indian ink.
Linework
Pen-and-ink drawings are usually composed of lines; hatching, crosshatching, stippling, dots and dashes, spattering and scribbling are just some of the techniques that can be employed to convey form and volume, texture, light and shade.
First strokes
Do not begin pen-and-ink work until you have tried drawing and practising movement and line with a pen or a brush. Work on a smooth paper, and learn to use a minimum of pressure to get an even flow of ink from the nib on to the paper. If you are practising with a dip pen, learn to judge when the ink will run out, so that you are not in
