Chicago Skyline Multi-Color Pen & Ink Cityscape Drawing Of Downtown At Sunset #291A

Description

Chicago skyline 291A multi-color pen & ink cityscape drawing of downtown skyscrapers at sunset by Stephen Condren.

Cityscape

This cityscape rendering is a multi-colored pen & ink drawing of the Chicago skyline at sunset on Lake Michigan. Many color inks were applied to this cityscape rendering to bring out the beauty of the sunset. Hatched lines were not used because I did not want the line work to be too dark. The darkness was made thought the application of deeper colored inks with wide strokes. Yellow and orange are the dominant colors near the sun because they are bright colors. In the middle of the drawing I have put down brown, red, and green. On the far right side of the drawing I have black, green, and blue inks for the night sky.

The lines that more the skyscrapers are vertical stroke lines all done by free-hand. There are no ruler lines in this cityscape drawing. The clouds are reflected in the waters of Lake Michigan below. Small wave like lines have been used to make the clouds that are also reflected in the water. Each line stroke was slowly applied to make sure that the colors were woven together to make a complete form. There is no local color at all in this cityscape drawing.

The color blend well when seen from a distance. This cityscape rendering is best view up close so that you can see all of the detail.

Chicago Skyline 291A

The cityscape drawing is overlooking Monroe Harbor from the east. Willis Tower is directly in front the sun radiating the glowing yellow light. The cityscape drawing gets darker as you move to the right because the darkness of the night is coming in.

A fine point Speedball 512 nib was used to make the cityscape drawing because it offers a thin line. The line weight is the same for the entire drawing because I wanted the color to be up front. Slow and accurate drawing make the ink go down smoothly. Caution has to be taken when mixing color ink because they can blur the cityscape rendering.

On the far left side is Willis Tower which has 1089 floors. On the far right side is the St. Regis which has 101 floors. The center right of the cityscape has Trump Tower which has 98 floors. The Aon Center which is next to his looks taller because it is closer tot he shoreline. Monroe Harbor is the most popular view of the Chicago cityscape. The harbor is located along the shores of Grant Park. Trees from Grant Park can be seen at the bottom of the skyscrapers. These trees have color inks in them. The used of red and green in the trees makes the landscape rich in color tones.

The yellow ink make the sun shine brightly in the west. Red and blue ink has made the center of the sky a very rich tone. The right hand side of the clouds has blue and green to make the area darker. There is only a small amount of black in the drawing which is used for the skyscrapers.

Skylines, Cityscapes, And City Scene Genres

Below are three links to genres of skylines and cityscapes that I have done to help you understand my process:

1. Pen & Ink sketch & wash:  #207A
2. Color & lead pencil illustrations:  #2453A
3. Watercolors and tempera:  #1170A

Alt Image Tag

Chicago skyline 291A multi-color pen & ink cityscape drawing of downtown skyscrapers at sunset by Stephen Condren.

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Chicago skyline 291A multi-color pen & ink cityscape drawing of downtown skyscrapers at sunset, matted white in the size of 11″ x 14″.