

Work your way around the drawing, adding more lines and building up the intensity of shading.Ĭhoose how close together you want your lines to be. Start with light pressure and build up the density of lines as you go. Now you can start cross hatching the shadow areas of your drawing, using a variety of strokes.
#Contour meaning drawing free
The lightest areas of the drawing can be left white and free of hatched marks, if you’re using a white paper. The darkest areas of the drawing will be those furthest away from the light source. Identify the lightsource in your subject, as this will help you determine which areas are in shadow. When cross hatching more complex subjects, you should outline some of the most important details. Draw the contours and details of your subject Capture the essence of the subject with a basic outline.
#Contour meaning drawing how to
How to cross hatch: Step by Step Outline your subjectĬreate a simple contour drawing of your subject. A greater number of shorter strokes with give the drawing more texture.

Combine the hatching and cross hatching technique.Vary the appearance of the marks, especially if you are drawing landscapes including rocks, leaves and trees, as by creating more jagged marks, scribbles and curved marks, your subject will appear more organic and realistic.Lines don’t have to be straight, some lines will curve to fit the contours of your subject.Diagonal lines will bring dynamism to the drawing. Horizontal lines will give a flat effect, while vertical lines will create an impression of height. Decide on the direction of your hatching.Represent light, shadow and form in a drawing by varying the thickness and closeness of lines.This is a great way to improve your observational drawing skills and accurately represent light and shadow from life. Try setting up your own still life arrangement to draw from life. Once you’ve mastered shading simple shapes with the cross hatching technique, practice hatching simple subjects, such as fruit. The only limit to creating the impression of light and shadow in your drawing, is your imagination. Combine the cross hatching technique with other drawing techniques, such as stippling, hatching or tonal shading. You are not limited to making perfectly straight parallel lines, you can draw curved lines to fit with the contours of the shape you are trying to represent.

Rembrandt used a mixture of hatching and cross hatching techniques in this etching Once you’ve got the hang of it, you can start experimenting with different mark making methods using the hatching technique.

Start by drawing simple shapes like circles, squares and triangles. To get started, all you need is a drawing tool and some paper. So artists can use drawing tools like fountain pens, ink liners or etching tools to create the impression of the subject. Tonal shading requires a medium like charcoal or graphite, where depending on the pressure applied, the mark will appear darker or lighter. The main benefit of the cross hatching technique, is that artists don’t need to use tonal shading to represent light and shadow. By varying the spacing, direction and density of the lines, you can create the impression of form, volume, light and shadow. Benefits of the cross hatching technique subtle cross hatching details with soft pencilĬross hatching is an incredibly versatile technique that can be used to create a range of different effects. The closer the hatched lines are together, the darker the area will appear, and the more space there is between the hatched lines, the lighter the area will appear. By using this technique, the artist can create the lightest and darkest values, to create a complete drawing.ĭrawing with this technique is a great way to create the illusion of three-dimensionality on a two dimensional surface. The purpose of the cross hatching technique is to create a value range in a drawing. This is what creates a ‘hatched’ effect’. Cross hatching is a type of shading technique, whereby artists will draw parallel lines at two angles that cross one another to create the impression of light and shadow.
