Continuous line drawing can help in developing visual intelligence

02 October, 2012

Continuous line drawing or unbroken line drawing is a drawing technique that is, at times, used as a warm up art by teachers before doing serious artwork in professional courses. However, it can be used to enhance the visual intelligence of school students in their formative years of learning.

IN A continuous line drawing, the drawing instrument never leaves the paper until you are done with the shape. It requires a paper and a pen or a pencil as material materials to draw. It combines both the hard edged shape of the object and fluidity as a representational drawing of the objects

At times, it is also called blind object drawing since it evokes the sensation of touching the contours or edges of a figure a bit internally, but completely around the perimeter. Therefore, hands are much more dominant in a continuous line drawing as an expressive part of the person.

Such a drawing provides the first sensation about an object without allowing one’s rational mind to interfere with the process.

A beginner must proceed as follows for having a go at continuous line drawing.

-Take a pencil and a blank piece of paper.

-Choose something you want to draw such as a fish, star, bird, tree, cloud leaf, face, flower, or fruit from a book or whatever inspires you.

-Observing critically at the contours of the chosen object

-Decide where you want to start and proceed continuously to end the shape.

-Then, draw it on paper.

A study of what you helps create your tactile sense and visual intelligence. Your observations and choice of an alternative to capture the essence of the object leads to the idea of movement in your mind's eye first - before you draw. It's like taking a dot for a walk to create a shape - both in your mental plane, and on the paper.