In your business (animation) line is one of the most important elements. With line you can create the wonder, humor and beauty of the Disney style cartoon feature. It all starts with a simple story line and progresses into a very complex and entertaining medium. Line is a very exciting discovery that man (artists) has developed to a phenomenal degree. Drawing in line can be a real adventure and when used skillfully can be a source of adventure for the millions of viewers who see your work on the screen. Line is not just a tracing tool — it is a living, organic thing, capable of describing just about anything you can dream up.
Last week as I was thinking about the next handout, I started to sketch some ideas on line. It soon veered off into some nonsensical ideas that, nevertheless, seemed playful, so I decided to pass them off as a handout.
There are many kinds of lines.
Short ones,
long ones,
curved lines,
and some that get off to a good start but then seem to poop out.
You can do anything with lines. Years ago there was a silly gimmick that went like this: Do you know what this is?
It’s a TV screen for people who squint.
Know what this is?
It’s a tornado with the hiccups.
There are sturdy lines,
staggering lines,
and lines that just can’t seem to get off the ground.
There are obsequious lines that always curtsy,
proud lines with chests out,
obese lines,
normal lines,
and squashed lines.
There are graceful lines.
There are ugly lines,
gregarious lines,
and loners.
There are choppy lines and
continuous lines.
There are lines that are the shortest distance between two points.
Lines make music possible (with the help of spaces).
There are dotted lines to sign on,
a line of bull,
a skyline, and
invisible lines like the equator.
There are shore lines,
airlines,
scrimmage lines, and
The moon, prima donna of the heavens,
in its proud fullness took
its place on the stage of night,
and performed its slow, graceful way
across the dark blue, speckled sky
in a costume of borrowed light.
Poetic lines on a page and the lines of old age,
rebellious lines, lines that obey, leftover lines to be thrown away.
And if you are a theatre goer — lines in a play:
Lines that soldiers form while they’re on duty, and last but not least, lines of wondrous beauty.