Pen and Wash with Fountain Pen
Posted on July 11 2017
Sketching interests me. I like its abstractness and manner how artists convey the mood of their work through expressive lines. In my journey to learn and improve (I need more), I have taken lessons and bought books. I joined Fernando Sena's workshops and took Chinese Painting at Yuchengco Museum. I constantly watch videos and practice the principles.
A branch of Sketching which interests me a lot is Urban Sketching. This methods recreates everyday city life and urban architecture with the use of Pen and Wash technique. The technique uses ink to make lines and color washes with water color.
In my work above, I used the following tools:
Ink
Noodler's X-Feather Ink is good for pen and wash because the ink is waterproof. It doesn't smudge as much when you paint over the lines. Because of the ink's negative reviews about damaging the feeder and nib, I advice you to use a low cost fountain pen, so even if it gets damaged, the wallet won't frown much.
You can also fill up your pen's tank with ink by converting your FP into an eye dropper. Do this if you don't like filling your tank often.
Fountain Pen
There are 2 things to consider here, the pen size and nib. The fountain pen is something personal, you may use whatever brand you want. For my sketches, I prefer to use EF nibs because I like the thin lines. If you are into fatter lines, you can use, M to BB nib. For the pen size, I like something small so I can conveniently bring it everyday. Here, I used the Kaweco Sport because its pocketable, also the price is reasonable. If you want something less, a Pilot Preppy is also good.
Winsor & Newton Cotman Watercolor Field Box Set (12 half pans)
Again, it's about convenience. This set can be brought anywhere because of its small size. It comes with a brush, water container and pan. the 12 colors are enough to make beautiful impressions of scenes. Since this is a student grade set, it is good enough for practice and projects.
Craft Doodle Water Brush
This water brush comes in many sizes, I used the medium for painting. I have had brush for a couple of years now and it is still in good condition. This brush is good for practice only and not advisable for big drawings.
Yumi Journal
The Yumi journal is part of my everyday carry. The notebook comes in Blank, Dotted, Grid and Weekly + Notes. I used the blank for the drawing. The paper is fountain pen friendly and can hold light washes.
This photo is the back part after the wash.
Photo of tools I used: