Other Ways to Draw
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Other Ways to Draw

Picasso drawing with light in 1949. Photograph by Gjon Mili.
Picasso drawing with light in 1949. Photograph by Gjon Mili.

Think of drawing, and you think of paper and pencil. It’s where we all started, right? Graphite, charcoal, pen and ink, and even chalk are all familiar drawing tools.

But there are many ways to make a line. Here are a few of the ways we’d like to try:

Draw with electricity

The Circuit Marker Pen draws with a silver-based ink that conducts electricity. It’s typically used to teach about circuits in school, but why not make art with it? See it in action in this Facebook video.

gif from tiltbrush.com.
gif from tiltbrush.com.

Draw in three-dimensional space

If you buy this, please bring it by The Art League so we can play with it too.

The Tilt Brush pairs with virtual reality goggles of your choice to — more or less — turn the room into your canvas. You can draw in three dimensions and walk through your creation to admire it from other angles.

Drawing Machine 1 by J.L. Griffiths

Draw with a machine

It was only a matter of time before we taught machines to do our drawing for us …

These creations are less about the end product and more about the performance, pattern, and process of drawing (with a little bit of sculpture thrown in). They can be powered by pendulum, bicycle, rubber band, and frequently by computer.

Out of the Fire in Kari Van Tine’s studio

Dance a drawing

Another drawing that’s part performance, you might have seen one taking place in the Torpedo Factory last year. Artist Kari Van Tine uses her entire body to “dance” drawings with charcoal on large scrolls of paper.

Draw with light

Light drawing, more commonly known as light painting, was made famous by a collaboration between Pablo Picasso and Life magazine photographer Gjon Mili. In the age of digital cameras and LED lights, it’s an easy and fun way to experiment.

Basically, you need a camera that can do long exposures, and a source of light: an LED pen light, a sparkler, or even your smartphone’s screen. Find some tutorials to get you started on this website.

 

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