The history and beauty of one-line drawing
THE HISTORY:
Many people think that the popularity of single line drawings stared during this century but, the truth to be told, it started way long ago, you can't even imagine.
The most famous example of one line drawing dates back to the early 20th century, the one made by Pablo Picasso. He took a complex example and simplified it into one single unbroken line. This type of drawing can look comparatively simple to make, but capturing the true nature of the shape in just one line can be quite challenging.
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| Pablo Picasso |
The French artist duo ‘Differantly’, in short DFT. They are one of the most well known one line artists that are active today, as they collaborated with big brands such as Adidas, Nike, Nissan, Hermès, and Adobe.
“During our process, we go through phases that are visually rich and complex before removing what’s not substantive. It’s a maturation process that can be painful as it consists of letting go, giving up. But, it’s also very demanding as minimalism requests a certain level of perfection. Every element must have its sense, its utility, its intrinsic beauty.”
DFT’s style is minimal and straight forward. The line keeps the same thickness throughout the whole piece and flows in both sharp corners, as well as smooth curves. The line does not connect the beginning with the end, leaving the image open. This is the case with all of the following examples, except the last one.
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| DFT |
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| DFT |
On the other hand, the work of Katie Acheson Wolford is complex and yet drawn with only one line. She draws her artwork by putting the pen on paper and not taking it off until the piece is finished. She is challenging the way her hand and eye work together, as her pen has to keep moving fast enough in the right direction.
“You have to find kind of the sweet spot between too fast and too slow. Because if you go too slow you start to overthink, and if you go too fast you may overlook a really important line. It all happens in the drawing itself, and it either works or it doesn't work, and that is the amazing part about it.”
— Katie in a video of INSIDER
Katie’s style is complex and organic. She uses a fine-tipped pen which keeps the line consistent, yet you can see where it has moved faster and slower or was more pressure put on.
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| Katie Acheson Wolford |
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| Katie Acheson Wolford |
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| Flowsofly |
Flowsofly. The style of this artist is quite divers. However, it’s always within the same theme: erotica.
“I get bored very easily and can’t be bothered with figuring out details, but instead the process to get to the idea is the exciting thing for me. So I also work this way now when I usually see a photo or a movie scene or read something and then want to deconstruct that, interpret that, explore the idea, explore how I see it… and then the craft is more the necessity, and something that I had to get reasonably ok at, but still, I enjoy the conceptual part of the work a lot more. The pen sketches are just a quick way of expressing these concepts, giving a viewer enough to see it but not everything, not the whole picture.”
— Flowsofly in an interview with WE ARE MORTALS
As the work ranges from very rough to quite smooth, very complex to fairly simple, just the line or also including fills — the work is mainly recognizable by its erotic scenes. This one line artist has been a great inspiration for many others, including me.
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| Flowsofly |
The Notion is a design studio based in New Zealand, run by Ken the one line illustrator. His drawings are minimal and smooth, and so are the graphics displaying the artwork on his website. The goal is to evoke an emotional response from the viewer, inspiring to go beyond traditional boundaries.
“My take on one line illustration has always been about building an authentic connection with the viewer. As a one-line artist myself, I see a poetic resonance represented through the singular line. I see the possibilities one line has to offer to all creeds and walks of life. Because it is so encompassing, I see its potential in being an art form that is relevant especially in today’s world. We started Notion to make one line accessible and for people to find enjoyment and a way of expression. With one line, we want to bring awareness to certain issues we face globally as a community, in the hope of creating dialogue and influencing positive change. After all, what is the point of art if it doesn't help people. If it doesn’t evoke emotion. If it doesn’t challenge thinking.”
— Ken from Notion
His style is very smooth and you will hardly see any sharp turns. The line is clean and easy to retrace for the viewer. The work is super consistent and usually evolves around living creatures, including plants, animals, and humans.
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| Ken |
Since I am from India, why not talk about artists from India?
Subhankar is a one-line artist from India.
“I mostly do people through one-line. People and moments. They are complex and fascinating and I like to study them… deconstruct them so I can understand it better. It’s so amazing that a line is the most basic thing we learn as artists and then make it all so complex. But how wonderful it is that we can represent everything complex through a simple single line. That’s basically why. Deconstruction of people and moments.”
— Subhankar (Follow him on Instagram you will fall in love with his art as I did!)
Subhankar either uses just one line or a mixture of a line and fills. His style is raw and rough, comparable to that of Flowsofly. Also, the work has the same erotic theme. Subhankar so far sticks to just one style, giving the art an overall consistent look and feel. But who knows what the future holds.
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| Sbhankar |
Mira Lou captures moments of life in her drawings. There are often situations and emotions in her work that anyone can recognize from their own experiences.
“I love line drawings as a medium because they force you to focus on visual essentials. Sometimes it’s really difficult to get the special characteristics of a person right with the limited possibilities of a line drawing. But I like the minimalism and simplicity a line drawing can communicate when you succeeded.”
— Mira Lou
“I never really compared my work with others. I would say that I express my feelings and emotions through my work and therefore my lines are reflecting a part of myself. Additionally, everybody perceives visual things differently, so I would choose other elements as important in comparison to other people I guess. I can say, that I enjoy very smooth lines. At least in my work. I also admire other artists that can have a messier or rougher style.”- Mira Lou
Mira Lou is the first in this list who actively uses color in her work. We have seen other artists using black fills, but you will find colored lines and fills in her portfolio. Her lines are smooth.
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| Mira Lou |
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| Mira Lou |
Mony also has a quite diverse portfolio, ranging from solo objects to complex scenes, to the freehand faces you see in the middle.
“For me to draw in one line is like a therapy, also is the way I see the world. I think that there is a connection between our body and the things, people, places, and vibes that surround us. I love the idea of letting my hand do whatever it likes, it’s like drawing the shape of my thoughts.”
— Mony
She just starts drawing face by face, letting her hand flow freely without taking the pen off the paper. This creates a very rough, very artistic image.
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| Mony |
I admire Mira Lou for not comparing her work with others and staying true to herself. By looking at the work of others I became inspired and got to know what to do.
I believe that these boundaries spark my creativity, as the options become limited, it becomes more of a challenge to be original.
I concluded none of the artist ‘close’ their drawing. The line begins somewhere and ends somewhere else. Yet closing the line would truly ‘capture’ the essence of the image.
“We surround ourselves with things we love. Things that are useful and comfortable, that inspire us through their beauty or those capture memories of people and moments we treasure. Things that represent who we are. I made it my mission to capture these moments in just one continuous line.”
— Michelle, Gemmi Art
One line drawing: The line has one thickness, only curved turns, it should overlap other parts of the line as little as possible and has no fills. It should be as minimal as possible, yet still capturing the unique characteristics of the subjects. But most importantly — the line should have no beginning, no end, it is one. It flows continuously and forever.
This is just a selection of artists that make one-line drawings, but there are many of us out there. Yet we all have our unique style and philosophy behind our work.
Thanks for reading, I hope this article helps you understand one line drawings in a new way.
And of course the burning question: What style do you like best?
Blog by Bidisha~
Mails: patorbidisha12@gmail.com
bidishakanchita@gmail.com
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Other blogs by Bidisha:
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How to stay motivated while studying?
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