Directional Line Landscape
Using Directional and Expressive Lines In Landscapes.
I CAN:
- Understand that line can direct the viewer's eye in a work of art
- Understand line can convey texture, value and shape
- Practice techniques to develop methods to use in a landscape
- Use line and color to convey texture, direction, shape and feeling in a landscape
Warm Up Activity:
Either in your sketchbook or on a printed version of the handout below, practice making different kinds of expressive line that match the prompts.
Click The Link Below To Download The Handout
Observe & Consider
Look at the pencil drawing below by Vincent Van Gogh, consider the following questions.
- What techniques were used with line?
- How was texture created?
- Do the direction of lines matter? Why or why not?
- How are shapes & outlines shown?
- How are shadow and light shown?
- Why are lines varied (weight, length, direction etc.)?
More Van Gogh
Van Gogh's use of expressive line in these drawings implies texture, direction and mood.
Gos With How It Grows
The lines go up in the same way grass grows.
Movement
See how the direction of the line gives definition to the landscape. You can see movement in the grass and the sky.
Organic vs Man Made
Notice how the building is treated differently than the nature that surrounds it.
Create Your Own Line Landscape:
Using Van Gogh as inspiration, you will create your own Line Landscape.
- Choose a landscape (Consider choosing an image from one of the US National Parks)
- Make sure you have a foreground, middle ground and background
- Sketch out a basic outline & then fill it in with expressive lines that imply texture, movement, growth and mood
- Use many different kinds of lines
- You can do this in color or black and white, decide what you think works best for your landscape
You can download the handout at the link below.
Photo Credit: www.smofa.lunasoft.com
More Van Gogh
Here are 3 famous paintings by Vincent Van Gogh. Notice how his brushwork mimics the same lines he used in his sketches.
Here Is A Close Up Of The Lines In Starry Night
More About Van Gogh
To explore more about Vincent Van Gogh check out the link below:
Inspiration
If you have a great view from your backyard, start there. But you can also look up some amazing landscapes from around the world. I would suggest looking up some of the National Parks here in the United States for inspiration. I was in Utah recently and did the Mighty 5, It was incredibly inspiring and I suggest giving them a look. I will put some links below.
Feel free to use these royalty free images by the photographer Dave Meckler to work from.
I do highly suggest working from an image, so that you can get a good look at the texture, movement and detail of the landscape. If you have photos of a favorite vacation spot, that would be a great reference image.