Pen and Ink Drawing Lessons & Techniques
"PEN DRAWING
AN ILLUSTRATED TREATISE"
BY CHARLES D. MAGINNIS
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I.—Style in Pen Drawing
CHAPTER VI.—Architectural Drawing
CHAPTER VII.—Decorative Drawing
CHAPTER VI - ARCHITECTURAL DRAWING
Mr. Campbell's drawing, Fig. 51, is a very good example of the rendering of stone textures. The old masonry is capitally expressed by the short irregular line. The student is advised to select some portion of this, as well as of the preceding example to copy, using, no matter how small the drawings he may make, a pen not smaller than number 303. I know of no architectural illustrator who hits stonework off quite so cleverly as Mr. Goodhue. Notice, in his drawing of the masonry, in Fig. 8, how the stones are picked out and rendered individually in places and how this intimate treatment is confined to the top of the tower where it tells against the textures of the various roofs and how it is then merged in a broad gray tone which is carried to the street. Mr. Railton's sketches are full of clever suggestion for the architectural illustrator in the way of texture. Figs. 7 and 52 show his free rendering of masonry. The latter is an especially very good subject for study. Observe how well the texture tells in the high portion of the abutment by reason of the thick, broken lines. For a distant effect of stone texture, the drawing by Mr. Jaccaci, Fig. 53, is a fine example. In this the rendering is confined merely to the organic lines of the architecture, and yet the texture is capitally expressed by the quality of the stroke, which is loose and much broken.
The general result is extremely crisp and pleasing. For broad rendering of brick textures, perhaps there is no one who shows such a masterly method as Mr. Gregg. As may be seen in his sketch of the blacksmith shop, Fig. 48, he employs an irregular dragging line with a great deal of feeling. The brick panel by Mr. Bragdon, Fig. 54, is a neat piece of work. There is excellent texture, too, in the picturesque drawing by Mr. Harvey Ellis, Fig. 55:—observe the rendering of the rough brick surface at the left side of the building. A more intimate treatment is that illustrated in the detail by Mr. C. E. Mallows, the English draughts man, Fig. 56. In this drawing, however, the edges of the building are unpleasantly hard, and are somewhat out of character with the quaint rendering of the surfaces. Mr. Goodhue uses a similar treatment, and, I think, rather more successfully. On the whole, the broader method, where the texture is carried out more uniformly, is more to be commended, at least for the study of the beginner. Some examples of shingle and slate textures are illustrated by Fig. 57. It is advisable to employ a larger pen for the shingle, so as to ensure the requisite coarseness of effect.
 |
|
| FIG. 56 | C. E. MALLOWS |
 |
|
| FIG. 57 | C. D. M. |
 |
|
| FIG. 58 | C. D. M. |
An Architectural Problem To favorably illustrate an architectural subject it will be found generally expedient to give prominence to one particular elevation in the perspective, the other being permitted to vanish sharply. Fig. 58 may be said to be a fairly typical problem for the architectural penman. The old building on the right, it must be understood, is not a mere accessory, but is an essential part of the picture. The matter of surroundings is the first we have to decide upon, and these ought always to be disposed with reference to the particular form of composition which the subject may suggest. Were we dealing with the foreground building alone there would be no difficulty in adjusting the oval or the diamond form of composition to it.* As it is, the difficulty lies in the long crested roof-line which takes the same oblique angle as the line of the street, and the influence of this line must be, as far as possible, counteracted. Now the heavy over-hang of the principal roof will naturally cast a shadow which will be an important line in the composition, so we arrange our accessories at the right of the picture in reference to this. Observe that the line of the eaves, if continued, would intersect the top of the gable chimney. The dwelling and the tree then form a focus for the converging lines of sidewalk and roof, thus qualifying the vertical effect of the building on the right. As the obliquity of the composition is still objectionable, we decide to introduce a foreground figure which will break up the line of the long sidewalk, and place it so that it will increase the influence of some contrary line, see Fig. 59. We find that by putting it a little to the right of the entrance and on a line with that of the left sidewalk, the picture is pleasingly balanced.
[Footnote *: See footnote on page 62.]
 |
|
| FIG. 59 | C. D. M. |
We are now ready to consider the disposition of the values. As I have said before, these are determined by the scheme of light and shade. For this reason any given subject may be variously treated. We do not necessarily seek the scheme which will make the most pictorial effect, however, but the one which will serve to set off the building to the best advantage. It is apparent that the most intelligible idea of the form of the structure will be given by shading one side; and, as the front is the more important and the more interesting elevation, on which we need sunlight to give expression to the composition, it is natural to shade the other, thus affording a foil for the bright effects on the front. This bright effect will be further enhanced if we assume that the local color of the roof is darker than that of the walls, so that we can give it a gray tone, which will also make the main building stand away from the other. If, however, we were to likewise assume that the roof of the other building were darker than its walls, we should be obliged to emphasize the objectionable roof line, and as, in any case, we want a dark effect lower down on the walls to give relief to our main building, we will assume that the local color of the older walls is darker than that of the new. The shadow of the main cornice we will make quite strong, emphasis being placed on the nearer corner, which is made almost black. This color is repeated in the windows, which, coming as they do in a group, are some of them more filled in than others, to avoid an effect of monotony. The strong note of the drawing is then given by the foreground figure.
 |
|
| FIG. 60 | C. D. M. |
Another scheme for the treatment of this same subject is illustrated by Fig. 60. Here, by the introduction of the tree at the right of the picture, a triangular composition is adopted. Observe that the sidewalk and roof lines at the left side of the building radiate to the bottom and top of the tree respectively. The shadow of the tree helps to form the bottom line of the triangle. In this case the foreground figure is omitted, as it would have made the triangularity too obvious. In the color-scheme the tree is made the principal dark, and this dark is repeated in the cornice shadow, windows and figures as before. The gray tone of the old building qualifies the blackness of the tree, which would otherwise have made too strong a contrast at the edge of the picture, and so detracted from the interest of the main building.