Drawing Notes - Materials - Pen and Ink

You can draw with any type of pen you choose – a ballpoint or fountain pen can be used effectively – but there are two types that are particularly well suited to drawing for the following reasons.

Most ‘fineline’ or permanent ink pens are designed for artists, and produce sharp, fine lines that do not run or bleed, no matter what you do with them. Using these pens can produce fine line drawings that require no more treatment; alternatively you can dilute some Indian ink and add tone to a line drawing by washing this onto your picture using a soft brush.

The other type is the fibre-tip pen (often used for writing). The ink in these pens often is not permanent, which gives you the opportunity to wash across a line drawing with plain water to create subtle bleeds and tones.

Try It Yourself

Draw a pair of bananas using a fibre-tip pen, recording all the shapes in line. Then use a wet, soft brush to create the shading, starting at the bottom and working up towards the light.


Step by Step Exercise

1. Record the curved shapes of the group of objects using waterproof ink.
2. Using a very dilute ink, select the darkest areas of the group and wash this on, starting at the bottom and pulling up towards the light areas.
3. The key to this tonal drawing is not so much the variety of tones achieved by subtle dilution of the ink, but more the highlights that were left alone. You always need highlights in any drawing, and if they can reflect the texture of your objects, so much the better.