Drawing patterns with a dipping pen and ink

Using a dipping pen and ink to add patterns to your artwork can seem a bit intimidating at first but it is very easy to draw with a pen and it has many advantages.

You might also be interested in: Landscape Watercolor painting with zentangles : Rainforest Imagery

I like to add patterns in my works.

In my work, I am more and more interested in incorporating patterns and repetitive designs into my paintings and drawings. I started by adding patterns with markers and then moved on to using pen and ink for the following reasons:

• You don’t have to buy a new marker for each color you want to use, you can make your own mixes with fluid acrylic or ink.
• Markers you are using on your artworks have to be archival and acid free and that might not always be the case.
• Markers tends to have a short life span
• When working with fluid acrylic, you can be sure that your designs will be waterproof and won’t smudge if you decide to paint over them.
• Pen and ink is a very affordable,versatile, low cost medium
• Pen and ink works well to add design in white on top of a lighter color.

I still love working with markers, especially when drawing outside or when travelling as they have the advantage of being more portable than pen and ink.

Supplies

You can draw with pen and ink on a canvas surface.

• A drawing pen
• Nibs
• Fluid acrylic or ink.
• The traditional ink for pen and ink is India ink, I am using it when I want to draw in black and don’t need the designs to be waterproof.

My favorite nib is the speedball 512 Bowl Pointed, but you can try different nibs and see what you think works the best for your style.

Speedball 512 bowl pointed nib

Tip: You can add a few plastic beads to your fluid acrylics containers so you get a more homogeneous mix when you shake the container.

Dipping pen and ink techniques

Pull on your pen and don’t push as this would result into spatters. It seems easier to draw with pen and ink when you hold your pen a bit closer to the nib.

If you are having trouble making a line, try to vary the angle between the pen and your surface, sometimes holding your pen more parallel to the surface makes it work better, it increases also the risk of spills, so you have to find the angle that works the best for you.

Wash your pen and nib after each session, particularly if you are using fluid acrylic. Some acrylic might accumulate on the nib over time and you might have to change it after a while, but they are very cheap to buy and you can buy only the nib.

It is very pleasant to draw with pen and ink on yupo paper as the surface is very sleek.

Surfaces you can draw on with a dipping pen and ink

I am using pen and ink on paper, canvas and board prepared with gesso, although the gessoed board is not the most convenient surface for pen and ink as the texture is a bit gritty.

It works well on paper and canvas and really well on yupo paper as the surface is very sleek on yupo paper.

Pen and ink works well on canvas.

Some ink spilled!

If you act fast, you should be able to clean up any spills on canvas.

If you act very fast, especially on a surface like canvas or board or yupo paper and take off the spill with a tissue paper, you should be fine.

Drawing with a dipping pen and ink in combination with brushes

For some designs you can start by drawing a grid and an outline with pen and ink.

Then fill out the spaces with a small brush.

You can use pen and ink to add details in a mixed media piece.

In Tombouctou, mixed media on yupo paper mounted on board.

or to add zentangle inspired designs to an acrylic painting.

Imagined Reality, acrylic on canvas, Sandrine Pelissier

Have you tried a dipping pen an ink on your artworks, did you like it?