A 4-hour online lecture in English with detailed explanations and demonstrations on the technique of hatching with pen nib & ink, and also tips on the fundamentals of stippling.
This Zoom session has already occurred, but it was RECORDED
and remains permanently available on YouTube.
You can buy access to the recording for USD 44,00 (Forty-Four American Dollars)
Basic summarized information
(detailed information is further below)
— What is this lecture about?
It addresses the most appropriate way to use a dip pen nib in order to get the best from it. Even experienced artists who are familiar with this tool may eventually face issues with its functioning and mannerisms, having a hard time trying to figure out how to keep the work flowing smoothly.
I teach simple procedures to help obtain the finest lines, preserve, clean, and even restore the nibs. I also transmit my simple method for maintaining the best flow of the ink, keeping its good quality, and avoiding dehydration. Last but not least, I propose and demonstrate a series of exercises that embody the essentials of the visual language of hatching for light and shade (all of which are explained and pictured in my free guidebook) and also many tips on the technique of stippling.
This lecture is an introductory class to the complete course on this technique, which will run in November. Registrations for the full course will open after the lecture.
In the video below, you can watch an example of my rendition of scientific illustrations with the technique of pen nib and ink.
A guidebook with a huge amount of information on the technique and all the necessary tools is already available and can be downloaded right now for free! (access it here)
— What's the price?
USD 44,00 (Forty-Five American Dollars) - payment is done via PayPal.
— Where and when will this course happen?
This is an online lecture in English via Zoom on a Saturday, October 12, 2024.
The lecture will run from 16:30 pm to 20:45 pm UTC. Consult what that time means in your time zone by clicking here. In short, it will be morning or early afternoon in North America, afternoon in Africa and Europe, and late night in the Indian Ocean region.
— What if I enroll but miss the lecture, entirely or partially? What if my connection is unstable?
The class will be fully recorded and shared on the next day as private videos on my channel on YouTube. Hence anyone enrolled can watch or rewatch the whole content afterward as many times as necessary.
— Are there any prerequisites?
No, anyone can participate in the lecture regardless of previous knowledge or skills.
— Do enrollees need to have the material? Can they practice during the lecture?
Not necessarily, but those who want to have the material can find a list in the free guidebook and in the text below. All are free to practice during the lecture and also to ask questions about their eventual difficulties or challenges.
— What technological apparatus do I need?
You must have the application Zoom installed on any device with internet access.
— How can I enroll?
Please read through all the complete information above and below, where you find also the supplies list. If no question remains and you decide to enroll, send me an email at the address below with the data requested, and I will reply and send you a payment request via PayPal. WARNING: I always reply in one day at maximum and always check my spam box, so if you do not receive any feedback from me, please resend the message or try reaching out to me through social media.
— The email message for registration must contain the following data:
1. Your full name
2. The country where you live
3. The email address you use to log in on YouTube (this is to provide you with access to the private videos with the recording of classes)
4. Also, please tell me how you have come to know about this lecture
As you receive my PayPal payment request and the process is completed, I will reply confirming your registration and sending your invoice.
Detailed information
A brief introduction to the lecture's content:
The best use of pen nibs requires deep knowledge of how they work and the variables that influence their functioning. Only then will we be able to investigate how to better hold the nib and move it on the paper, how to keep it clean, preserve, store and even repair it. This lecture clarifies all these aspects to help you obtain the best from this marvelous tool and the techniques involved in its use, addressing the different visual languages of both hatching and stippling to produce the effect of light and shade.
Topics Addressed in this Lecture
The traditional pen nib is quite a delicate tool that demands discipline from the artist and requires a variety of cautions to avoid damage and preserve its good qualities. Not only does the nib need care but also the ink, whose vial should not ever be left uncapped — otherwise it loses fluidity by dehydration. Also, the paper should not risk being stained by ink drops or spills and should remain protected from our hand’s skin oils, for this can cause the ink to be repelled. While most artists intuitively know all of that or learn it from their own experience, just a few of them do take concrete measures to prevent accidents.
This lecture addresses those measures, offering hints and very simple solutions on how to preserve nibs with a method of constant and perfect cleaning, and even how to restore or improve nibs through sanding and polishing them in specific ways. There are also simple – but necessary - methods for preventing the ink from dehydrating in the tube or being spilled and also for enhancing its viscosity, thus improving the quality and consistency of lines during the drawing.
There will be explanations and demonstrations on the mechanisms of how the nib works; how to investigate the source of eventual issues and take measures to fix them; how to keep the nib perfectly clean and always functioning like a brand new one; how to hold and move the nib on the paper correctly to get the best of its resources – including obtaining the finest lines possible. Also, there will be tips on how to proceed to make corrections, erase the ink and remake the drawings, how to recognize the qualities of a good paper, and much more.
Furthermore, some specific practices and motions proposed in the guidebook will be demonstrated live for a better understanding of their mechanisms. All these practices are related to many particular needs that we face while representing light and shade using the visual language of hatching. Demonstrations provide methods for rendering some of these aspects with the language of hatching while describing how to make the best use of the pen nib technique. The students are welcome to practice during the lecture, ask questions, and request advice.
Materials (optional)
— Supplies list:
This list is a revised and expanded version from the list found in the tutor’s free guidebook on pen nib and ink – download it for free here – which provides a valuable amount of information to help you begin to understand many important aspects of the tool and the technique even before the lecture, thus you can take better advantage of all teachings.
1. The nibs
1a – Pen nibs recommended – better to have three or more individual nibs from some of the brands and models listed below. Hints and tips about the selection at the time of purchase are in the main text of the guidebook. If you cannot be in person at the store to individually select the best nibs, I recommend buying a higher number of nibs to increase your chance of obtaining some great ones. Remember to acquire also the correct holder(s), since some styles of nibs require different holders:
Speedball Hunt #100 - this should be the first preference; it provides thin lines and has the flexibility that allows good line thickening. It allows for some of the finest lines of all pen nibs currently available. However, it needs to go through rigorous selection at the moment of purchase, according to the recommendations in the guidebook.
Speedball Hunt #104 - thin lines, but blades are short, hence there is less flexibility and quite a limited capacity of line thickening. Nevertheless, it is suitable when one wants to avoid unintentional thickening and it is also excellent for micro stippling. Although too little flexible, this nib is more likely to provide a fine line and help you get familiar with the standard of thin lines aimed in this course. So it's worth it to purchase some 5 or 10 of them, as a good percentage is likely to provide a good fine line.
Speedball Hunt #102 - crow quill style, it makes thicker lines compared to the models above and is steadier; however, it can provide relatively good fine lines and it also allows for some good thickening, being suitable for outlining. Eventually, some of the best nibs of this model will be able to provide the finest lines possible, just like the Hunt #100 can do, particularly after being correctly sanded and polished.
1b – Alternative choices (in order of preference)
Gillott #290 VINTAGE – hard to find and more expensive, but worth it, depending on its conditions. Some rarely found brand-new-like preserved nibs, with good manufacturing conditions such as those the guidebook suggests, can be used for quite a long time, provided that they are well conserved and cared for.
Deleter Maru-pen [find it here (10 pieces) and here (2 pieces)] – this is quite a well-manufactured and refined nib. Crow quill style, it provides awesome fine lines, but as it's not very flexible, the capacity of line thickening is a bit limited. This is the only reason why it is not ahead of Speedball in this ordination.
Tachikawa #77 Maru Pen Nib – just like the one above, this is quite a well manufactured and refined nib, but not so flexible as Speedball Hunt #100 or Vintage Gillott #290. Even so, it can provide a relatively good variety of thickness to lines. It is worth it to purchase several of them to find the best ones among all, which will provide the finest lines.
Gillot #290 (currently made) – this is the last and least resort, not a great option because the quality of manufacturing of current nibs is extremely low and the rate of usable nibs comes down to something close to just 10 or 20%. Therefore, in order to have a few useful nibs, one has to buy at least 30 nibs and be lucky. But if you can find a vintage bronze model as suggested above, please go for it.
Refillable/disposable pens – for outlining, one can use a good refillable pen – or even a disposable one, provided that its ink is quite dark, since some of them have a somewhat diluted tone. Note that thickness variations during scribing are not possible with such pens. Recommended brands and models are Micron (disposable), Koh-I-Noor Rapidograph and Rotring Isograph (both refillable).
Besides the options suggested above, feel free to choose and bring to the course any material of your preference. Nibs I mentioned earlier are Nikko G, Zebra G, Principal EF Leonardt, Presbitero 505 EF and Brause and Co. 76. Most of these are not able to provide too delicate lines as the other suggested models do, but it is worth trying, as these nibs have lots of other great qualities.
1c – Nibs to be avoided:
– Speedball Hunt #103 - design really quite similar to #100, a bit more flexible, but usually does not work well at all, for some unknown reason;
– Do NOT be attracted towards HIRO Leonardt #700. Just do not buy it!!
2. India Ink - suggested brands are (in order of preference): 1. Talens 2. Staedtler Mars – ‘paper’ (give preference to the model labeled for “paper”, since the model for “film + paper” has a secant that can cause fluidity issues), 3. Cretacolor. Feel free to bring to course inks from any brand of your preference instead, or any material you had already acquired.
3. Paper - (order of preference): Lana Bristol, Canson Bristol, Fabriano 4L, Strathmore 500 Bristol Plate Finish. Winsor & Newton Bristol may appear excellent at face value and indeed provides a marvelous surface, but as the work develops the paper reveals its abrasive tendency to literally wear down the pen nib’s tip. Feel free to bring to class any paper of your preference or any brand that you have already acquired and want to discuss about, or give it a try.
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| Hog bristle brush |
4. Small brush with stiff hairs (stiff nylon, plastic, hog bristle) – it will be used to clean the pen nib with alcohol, so its size must be compatible with the nib’s size. The width of 5mm for the hair’s base is enough, be it rounded or flat. Prefer a non-expensive brush, as hairs will have their tips trimmed to increase stiffness.
5. Alcohol 99% (or at least a minimum of 70%) - to wipe the pen nib. It can dilute and remove even the dry inlaid ink from old pens.
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| Penicillin vial |
6. Penicillin vial WITH CAP (as seen in the figure) - as explained in the guidebook, this vial is useful for the maintenance of good conditions of the principal body of ink, which remains preserved inside the closed original bottle. Its use is simple and indispensable to our goals in this course. In case of difficulty in obtaining one, you can try using any similar container that may be helpful, preferably with a snap-on cap rather than a screw top.
7. Lint-free cloth or paper towel – to wipe the pen nibs. Paper towel is also used to protect the drawing from the hand’s touch.
8. A little piece of cardboard or any rigid paper plus adhesive tape – it serves as a base to steady the ink vial over it, thus avoiding spilling.
9. A dropper, a straw, or a pipette – to transfer ink from the original bottle to the penicillin vial.
10. A cup, a glass, or a pencil holder - to support the pen nibs with their holders so that they stand firm, preventing scrolling, falls, and disasters.
11. A magnifying lens of jeweler’s type, with a magnifying index of at least 5x, to check the conditions of cleaning and help while sanding.
12. Double edge razor blades and eraser-pencil or ink eraser – for corrections.
13. Sandpaper for metal, minimum 600-grit, but also 1000-grit or higher, to polish the nibs' tip.
