Pen
and Ink Drawing 6
Ink
Drawing Techniques: Cross Hatching
Click
here to download an A4 copy of this cross hatching worksheet
Hatching
is an ink drawing technique where you apply tone and
texture in rows of parallel lines. Cross Hatching is
where you crisscross several layers of Hatching in order
to darken your tones.
Hatched
lines should be drawn lightly and closely together.
When you begin you should set your paper at an angle
to find a comfortable position for drawing. Change the
angle of the paper (and not your body position)
when applying further layers of cross hatching. A comfortable
and fixed drawing position is the key to consistent
cross hatching.
It
is important to practice cross hatching before you start
an ink drawing as you need to develop a confidence and
rhythm to your technique. To help you practice this
we have devised a cross
hatching worksheet that you can use to improve your
technique.
Vincent
Van Gogh (1853-1890)
Fountain
in the Garden of the Hospital, St Remy
(ink on paper, 1889)
Cross
Hatching can take many forms. It can be done freehand
with carefully drawn lines, as in our drawing of Whitby,
or more expressively, as in Van Gogh's 'Fountain in
the Garden of the Hospital, St Remy'. It may also be
done mechanically with a ruler. You may even combine
both approaches in one technique. Whatever method of
hatching you adopt, it should be sympathetic to the
subject of your work. For example, Van Gogh's drawing
above, which captures the overgrown garden in spontaneous
energetic strokes, would look inappropriate if it was
executed using a sterile mechanical technique.
Cross
Hatching Examples
Click
here to download an A4 copy of these cross hatching
examples
To
help you think about the various methods of cross hatching,
we have created a sheet of cross
hatching examples for reference and practice. This
is not an exclusive list and you could invent more variations
that suit your own approach.
