SINGLE LINE ART Five

SINGLE LINE ART Five hands drawn without lifting the pencil for a moment according to the Parisian artistic duo Differantly (DTF). Right: Mo Ganji creating a new design. When Emma and Stephane put pen to paper, all eyes go on a roller coaster ride. Lines turn into loops, twisting and turning all over the paper, forming steep curves and sharp angles. Within seconds they have conjured up racing cars, cult sneakers or perfume bottles without lifting the pen off the page once. Both members of the Parisian art duo “Differantly” (DFT) specialize in “one line art” and are among the most prominent exponents of this art form. Their continuous line drawings have become sought-after collectors’ items and their clients include major international names. Very few people are aware that this seemingly effortless technique is actually part of a complicated process. According to Stephane, “The drawing performance is only the tip of the iceberg. First we study an object in detail, capture its very essence and sketch it from different angles. Then we rewind. A sports shoe or a handbag becomes deconstructed and ultimately scaled down to the bare minimum.” Hatching, shading and colors are irrelevant. Only the continuous line counts. It prompts the onlooker to search for where it begins and where it ends. It doesn’t take long to realize that one line art calls for a whole host of talents, such as the utmost concentration and a precise power of imagination, not to mention stamina. Keeping your pen on the paper also requires the courage to make irrevocable decisions and radically reduce complexity down to the bare essentials. Even the most famous exponent of one line art, Pablo Picasso, went through this process. In his “Bull” series of 11 lithographs created in 1945/46, he started off by depicting the creature realistically, then in a cubist style and finally in sparse abstract lines. The Spanish master, who was inspired by the precise outlines of cave paintings, had an unrivaled knack for carving out the characteristics of animals, dancers and musicians using sparing, yet all the more accurate, lines of ink. Whereas Alexander Calder transposed single line drawings into wire sculptures from 1926, such as in his wire portrait of the painter Fernand Léger, a number of great illustrators also experimented with line art: Paul Klees’ work “Little Jester in a Trance” (1927) is the most famous continuous line monotype. “The Man with the Big Mouth” and “What Is He Missing?” (both 1930) were created using continuous pencil and watercolor brush lines over the paper. “ONE LINE ART IS CONSTANTLY FORCING YOU TO TAKE COLD- HEARTED DECISIONS.” Saul Steinberg used lines for a more acidic and pronounced effect. This famous Romanian-American illustrator attempted to emigrate to the United States with a fake passport in 1941, then supplied The New Yorker with cartoons while based in the Dominican Republic. He depicted the escape in his one line portrait “Passport” (1948), then came up with his most famous, untitled, continuous line work the same year, featuring a man drawing a circle around himself. Another character drawn with a single line was “Mr. Linea,” a choleric character of the 1970s cult “La Linea” cartoon series created by the Milanese cartoonist Osvaldo Cavandoli. The little stick man rants and raves, gesticulating wildly along a line that throws up new obstacles along his angry path. To this day, the challenge of creating patterns with a strong power of expression out of a few lines has fascinated 72 THE JAGUAR

GUARDIAN OF THE LINES IAN CALLUM, DIRECTOR OF DESIGN AT JAGUAR, ON THE VALUE OF THE SPONTANEOUS SKETCH PHOTOGRAPHY: DFT ONE LINE ART; KEREM BAKIR; TRENT MCMINN creative minds from diverse sectors: The tattoo artist Mo Ganji has conquered a niche in his Berlin studio with his “single line tattoos.” This German-Iranian artist sketches elegant images, such as mountain panoramas, out of fine ink lines. He believes that they symbolize “the circulation of energies, continuity and vitality.” With one line art, lines do not only demarcate shapes; they are also part of the picture: The graphic designer Chan Hwee Chong from Singapore modeled Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa” and Jan Vermeer’s “Girl with a Pearl Earring” out of a single spiral line. The circular motion is sometimes higher, sometimes flatter, and the ink pen is sometimes pressed lightly, sometimes harder, sculpting three-dimensional nose, mouth and eyes. The art form cunningly leads you to believe that it is spontaneous, but it is actually the result of meticulous groundwork. Mistakes are not forgiven – anyone who takes up the challenge can be sure to attract the onlooker’s attention. “One line art is essentially a painful process”, explains Stephane from Differantly. “Its diversity and minimalism are fascinating, but it is painstaking, constantly forcing you to take cold-hearted decisions and discard the superfluous – but it’s all definitely worth it!” “I ideally like to communicate my initial ideas with quick sketches. These are much more accurate than words and convey the spirit of what I’m picturing in my head. When it works best, the thought process controls the lines and the drawing becomes automatic, like speaking a familiar language. Completely new design ideas often come about accidentally on paper. As with one line art, lines are the best way to describe the essence and specific character of a car. You should be able to draw the basics of any good-looking car with three or four lines. For sports cars like the F-TYPE, what matters the most are the horizontal, moving lines and how they relate to the basic line. The linear grooves on the highlights on the side symbolize dynamism and quality. SUVs like the new, compact E-PACE have a completely different geometry: The lines are higher, more curved, and deliberately exaggerated over the wheels and roof. The slight ridge over the wheels conveys confidence. The silhouette is clear yet dramatic. We’ve also completely redesigned the lines for the I-PACE Concept, Jaguar’s first electric car, to be launched in mid-2018. The visual weight lies in the front section: It looks like the nose of the car is thrown forward while the rear holds back. It’s pretty dramatic, as if poised for action. This idea came about on a sheet of paper, long before the renderings and 3D models. So lines drawn by hand and the way the pencil interacts with the paper are fundamental to the design process. My job is to preserve this great first step.” THE JAGUAR 73