Medium Specifity - One Line

As you may have noticed, I have a thing for drawing. So when this Medium Specificity assignment came up I knew that I would do something with this medium. It wasn’t until yesterday that I got the inspiration to do what I did. Drawing is, in its purest form, just a bunch of lines that that convey some sort of meaning. Sometimes those lines can be a flower, a person, or a building. However I wanted to explore drawing at an even baser level. Could I make a drawing with just one line?

In our reading this week, McCloud’s “Setting the Record Straight”, the author explores the definition of comics. As I prepared to do this assignment, I took a look at the medium I was working with and began looking for the most basic definition of what a drawing is. It took a lot of thought considering there are multiple mediums that a drawing or illustration can use. Leaving behind the different mediums, the simplest, yet still far from perfect, definition of a drawing that I came up with is this:

A drawing is are a combination of markings on a surface that convey a message, meaning, or idea.

There are many techniques and styles that are used by illustrators in the making of a drawing. Shading, dots, even color in sometimes used. However the line is the most basic form of drawing. It has been used to convey meaning since the beginning of time. The alphabet is just a bunch of line drawings that we use to convey an idea, the combination of which conveys a complete meaning. You can write the letters T-R-E-E and someone will know that those four images together mean “tree”. 

I drew inspiration from an artist who goes by the name of Sir Shadow. He is known for his jazz inspired drawings that are primarily done with only one line. Are usual fairly simple yet are very elegant, showing a high level of skill and artistry. I don’t have that much experience in continuous one-line drawings like Sir Shadow but I gave it my best shot. Don’t be fooled. Although it might not look like it, the portrait that I drew is, in fact, drawn with one continuous line. In other words I didn’t pick up the pencil from the paper for the entirety of the drawing.

Through this exercise I found that simple lines can be very expressive and engaging. Though the drawing I did wouldn’t be winning any awards anytime soon, it is one of the first drawings of this kind I have done. It has its how sophistication and charm that other kinds of drawings lack. It is a part of the medium that can and should be explored further.