Line _____________________ Chapter 4

Line: A point in motion. A series of adjacent points. A connection between points. An implied connection between points. One of the most fundamental elements of art and design.

Directions in Line To draw a line, you move the point of your pencil across paper. To look at and visually follow a line, your eyes move as well. Lines can have direction; they can rise or fall, shoot off to the right or left, and fade away into the distance. Lines can be orderly and rigid, or fluid and spontaneous. Lines can also reflect movement in nature.

Richard Long, A Line Made by Walking, 1967

Varieties of Line Some of the fundamental types of lines are: Contour lines Cross-contour lines Hatch lines Cross-hatch lines Implied lines

Contour Lines

When a shape appears to be a flat, two-dimensional shape, then the line that defines its borders or edges is called an outline.

The lines that show us the basic edges of this shoe begin to suggest a 3-D form, something that has volume, and they are called contour lines.

Henri Gaudier-Brzeska, Female Nude, Back View, 1912 Again, we can see that these lines begin to tell us that this represents a 3-D object (a woman). They are contour lines, because they suggest the edges of a form that turns and curves through three-dimensional space.

Cross-Contour Lines

The contour lines are the darker lines, showing us the basic outlines of the forms. The lighter cross-contour lines that wrap around the forms enhance the volume. Organic lines

Cross Contour Lines

Cross Hatch Lines

Cross-hatching: These cross-hatch lines are slightly curved, subtly suggesting the cross-contours of the figures.

Rembrandt van Rijn, The Three Crosses, 1653 The cross-hatching allows the artist to develop a wide range of lights and darks, by overlapping more lines for the darker areas.

Implied Lines

Alberto Giacometti, Man Pointing, 1947

Titian, Assumption and Consecration of the Virgin, c. 1516-18

Line Analysis of Titian’s work Line Analysis of Titian’s work. Titian ties together the three separate areas of the piece: God the Father above, the Virgin Mary in the middle, and the Apostles below, by implied lines that create simple interlocking triangles. This unifies the mortal world with the spiritual world through unity, and the upward direction of the lines intensify the feeling of asscention.

Expressive Qualities of Line

Vincent van Gogh, The Starry Night, 1889 Van Gogh’s expressive lines give the image a whimsical feel, reminiscent of a dream. This painting would have a very different emotional quality if the lines were very straight and angular.

Vincent Van Gogh, Self Portrait, 1889. Oil on canvas Vincent Van Gogh, Self Portrait, 1889. Oil on canvas. Van Gogh’s style is highly unique and recognizable. His visible brushstrokes create strong lines in his paintings, which are autographic in style. This style of painting is strongly associated with him.

Vincent Van Gogh, Starry Night Over the Rhone, 1888. Oil on canvas.

Vincent Van Gogh, Bedroom in Arles (first version), 1888. Oil on canvas.

Zeus, or Poseidon, c. 460 BCE. Bronze, height 82 inches Zeus, or Poseidon, c. 460 BCE. Bronze, height 82 inches. Zeus was king of the gods in ancient Greece, and Poseidon was the god of the sea. The emphasis on horizontal and vertical lines gives this sculpture a sense of strength, and rational logic.

Robert Mapplethorpe, Lisa Lyon, 1982. Silver Gelatin Print. Robert Mapplethorpe, Lisa Lyon With Veil, 1982. Silver Gelatin Print. Mapplethorpe plays on the traditionally accepted roles of female and male bodies in this photograph. He purposely uses lines that are given to male bodies, and instead presents this composition with a female body. This opens a discussion about the truth of our cultural traditions and roles, as well as the biological and physical possibilities.

Robert Mapplethorpe Ken and Tyler, 1985 Platinum print Robert Mapplethorpe Ken and Tyler, 1985 Platinum print. Mapplethorpe often blurred the distinction between the “male” and the “female” in his works. In Ken and Tyler, the poses use curved and fluid lines that typically are associated with female bodies, but here they are seen with male bodies. Robert Mapplethorpe Ken and Tyler, 1985 Platinum print. Mapplethorpe often blurred the distinction between the “male” and the “female” in his works. In Ken and Tyler, the male body assumes the more traditionally female role of the nude in art.

Line Orientation

Jacques-Louis David, The Death of Socrates, 1787 The line quality used here suggests an orderly, logical scene.

Jacques-Louis David, Study for The Death of Socrates, 1787

Eugѐne Delacroix, The Death of Sardanapalus, 1827

Eugѐne Delacroix, The Death of Sardanapalus, 1827

Théodore Géricault, The Raft of Medusa, 1818-19. Oil on canvas Théodore Géricault, The Raft of Medusa, 1818-19. Oil on canvas. What appears to be going on in this image? What type of lines organize the composition? How does the artist’s choices of line orientation inform the content of the painting?

Angelica Kauffmann, Cornelia, Pointing to Her Children as Her Treasures, c. 1785. Oil on canvas. What appears to be going on in this image? What type of lines organize the composition? How does the artist’s choices of line orientation inform the content of the painting?

Examples of Op Art Optical Art is a style of visual art that makes use of optical illusions. The following art provides examples of how the most basic lines and shapes that create implied lines can produce complex compositions.