Free For All

 

Here’s a quick color study made with a big brush on small paper. The result is

almost entirely shapes with just about no lines at all.

Here’s another shape painting, by Jacob Lawrence. Both works begin with

plans, by the way.

Now for a  line - dominant scene by Lyonel Feininger. Here, even the shapes

are made by surrounding them with lines.

Finally, here’s a mix of lines and shapes from George Post, who made his elegant

compositions from careful pencil drawings.

When you are interested in combining lines and shapes you can begin by taking

note of what those around you do on purpose. It is just as useful for realism and

abstraction.

Find an image to paint that gets you thinking about what is made of shapes and

what is made of lines. Remember that you are in charge.