Examples of Contour Line Art Techniques: 3 Practical Examples You Can Use Today

Most articles begin with a dry definition. Let’s skip that. The easiest way to understand contour line art is to look at real examples of contour line art techniques: 3 practical examples that show how artists actually use line in daily practice.

Think about three very familiar situations:

• You’re drawing your own hand while it rests on the table.
• You sketch a coffee mug, a pair of glasses, and your phone.
• You draw a friend’s face using only lines, no shading.

Those are all classic examples of contour line art techniques in action. The focus is on the edges, the outlines, and the major folds and changes of form—without relying on blending or heavy shading. From there, you can build into more advanced variations like blind contour, cross-contour, and continuous line portraits.

Let’s walk through three core, practical examples first, then branch out into more ways to push the technique.

Example of contour line technique #1: Your hand as a living sculpture

If art schools had a mascot, it would probably be “The Hand Study.” It’s one of the best examples of contour line art techniques because your hand is always available, it’s complex, and it moves.

How to do it, step by step

Place your non-drawing hand on the table in front of you. Spread your fingers slightly so you can see the spaces between them. With a pen or pencil, start at one point—maybe the edge of your wrist—and slowly trace the outline with your eyes while your hand draws on the page.

Move your eyes along the real hand while your drawing hand follows on the paper. Don’t rush. Notice how each knuckle bulges, how the skin folds near the joints, how the nails have a distinct edge.

You’re not just copying a silhouette. You’re hunting for every small turn and bump in the form. That attention to subtle shifts is what makes this one of the best examples of contour line art techniques: 3 practical examples usually start with the hand because it forces you to really look.

Variations to try with your hand

• Classic contour: Look back and forth between your hand and the page, adjusting as you go.
• Blind contour: Keep your eyes on your hand only, never looking down at the drawing until you’re done. The result will be wild and distorted—and that’s the point. This trains your observation.
• Continuous line hand: Try to draw the entire hand without lifting your pen. You can loop back, overlap, and double lines, but keep the motion flowing.

These variations give you three examples of contour line art techniques using a single subject. Each one improves your eye-hand coordination and your comfort with confident, unbroken lines.

Example of contour line technique #2: Still life on your desk

The next example of contour line art techniques moves from the body to objects. Look around your desk or kitchen table: a mug, a spoon, headphones, a stapler, a small plant. This cluster of everyday things is a goldmine for contour practice.

Building a still life contour drawing

Arrange two or three objects so they overlap slightly. Overlap is important; it forces you to decide which object sits in front and which sits behind.

Start with the object that’s closest to you. Follow its outer edge slowly, then mark any major interior lines: the handle of the mug, the rim, the logo, the opening at the top. Then move to the next object, carefully drawing only the parts you can actually see—not what you know is there.

This simple rule—draw only what you see—is at the heart of most examples of contour line art techniques. It sounds obvious, but it’s surprisingly hard. Your brain wants to fill in hidden edges. Resist that.

Leveling up with cross-contour

Once you’re comfortable with basic outlines, add cross-contour lines—lines that wrap around the form like the stripes on a candy cane. On a mug, they might follow the curve of the cylinder. On a plant pot, they might curve around the belly of the pot.

These cross-contours are a more advanced example of contour line art techniques because they suggest volume and three-dimensional form without any shading. If you’ve seen diagrams of the human body with contour lines showing muscle shapes, you’ve seen this idea before.

Example of contour line technique #3: Expressive line portraits

Portraits are where contour line art starts to feel dramatic. You can say a lot about a face using only line: tension in a jaw, softness in the eyelids, or a furrowed brow.

Drawing a simple contour portrait

Ask a friend or family member to sit for a few minutes, or use your own face in a mirror. Begin with the outer shape of the head, then move to the hairline, ears, and neck. Add the bridge of the nose, the shape of the lips, and the outline of the eyes—no eyelashes, no shading, just the main edges.

You’re creating a map of the face. Even a very simple outline can read as a recognizable person if your proportions and angles are close.

Continuous line portraits as a modern trend

One of the most popular examples of contour line art techniques on social media right now is the continuous line portrait. You’ve probably seen these on Instagram, TikTok, or in home décor: a single flowing line that forms a stylized face.

To try this, start your line at one point (often near the neck or chin) and draw the entire portrait without lifting your pen. You can double back over lines, loop through the eyes, and connect features in ways that wouldn’t happen in reality. The result often looks minimal, stylish, and slightly abstract.

This is a great reminder that examples include both realistic and stylized contour drawings. You’re allowed to bend reality for the sake of rhythm and design.

More real examples of contour line art techniques to try

We’ve focused on three practical examples so far, but you can stretch contour line drawing into many more areas. Here are several more real-world situations that work beautifully as contour exercises.

Urban sketching with contour lines

When you’re out in a city or town, try doing a quick contour sketch of a building façade, a parked bicycle, or a row of street trees. Urban sketchers often lean on contour line art because it’s fast, portable, and easy to do with a simple pen and sketchbook.

For a strong example of contour line technique, pick a single subject like a bike. Trace the outer edges of the frame, then the inner shapes: wheels, spokes, seat, handlebars. Don’t worry about every last detail. Focus on the big shapes and the most important overlaps.

Nature studies: leaves, shells, and branches

Nature is full of organic, irregular forms that are perfect for contour drawing. Grab a leaf, a seashell, or a small branch and study its outline. Notice how no edge is perfectly straight.

A leaf, for instance, gives you:

• The outer contour of the leaf shape
• The interior contour of the central vein
• Smaller veins that create branching lines

This is one of the best examples of contour line art techniques for learning subtle variation in line direction and length. Botanical illustrators and scientific artists often start with clean contour drawings before adding any tone or color. Organizations like the Linnean Society and many university botany programs highlight the role of detailed line work in scientific illustration.

Gesture plus contour for moving subjects

If you draw people or animals, try combining a quick gesture drawing with contour lines. Start with a loose gesture to capture the action, then go back over it with more deliberate contours along the edges of the limbs, clothing folds, and major features.

This hybrid approach shows up in many figure drawing classes and workshops offered by art schools and community colleges. For example, many university art departments in the U.S., such as those listed through National Endowment for the Arts–supported programs, emphasize contour and gesture together to train both speed and accuracy.

How to make your contour lines more confident

Seeing examples of contour line art techniques: 3 practical examples is helpful, but the real magic happens when your own lines stop looking timid. A few habits can speed that up.

Slow your eyes, not your hand

When people first try contour drawing, they often freeze their hand and overthink each millimeter of line. Instead, let your hand move at a steady, gentle pace and slow your eyes down to match. Your eyes should glide along the subject like a snail, noticing every little corner.

This eye-hand pacing is what makes blind contour exercises so powerful. It’s less about the finished drawing and more about training your brain to really observe.

Vary your line weight

Even without shading, you can add depth by changing how heavy or light your lines are.

• Lines closer to the viewer can be slightly thicker.
• Lines where objects overlap can be darker to clarify what’s in front.
• Delicate areas (eyelids, lips, distant branches) can be lighter.

Look at classic ink drawings in museum collections (many major museums and universities, like the Metropolitan Museum of Art or Harvard Art Museums, share high-resolution drawings online). You’ll see how masters used line weight to guide the eye.

Embrace “ugly” studies

Some of the best examples of contour line art techniques come from sketchbooks that never see the light of day. Lines wobble, proportions are off, and yet the artist is learning.

Give yourself a few pages that are purely for experiments: blind contour, continuous line, drawing with your non-dominant hand, or filling a page with just hands or mugs. The more you practice, the more natural confidence will feel.

How contour line art fits into modern art and design

Contour line drawing isn’t just an old-fashioned exercise. It’s baked into a lot of current visual culture.

• Logo and branding design: Many modern logos use simplified contour-style outlines of animals, faces, or objects.
• Tattoo design: Fine-line tattoos often rely on contour drawing principles—clean outlines, minimal shading.
• Digital illustration: Procreate and other apps make it easy to create bold, clean contour line art, which you’ll see all over social media.
• Therapeutic art activities: Simple contour drawing exercises show up in art therapy and wellness workshops because they encourage focus and observation. While not medical treatment on their own, drawing and creative activity are often discussed as supportive for mental well-being in overviews from organizations like the National Institutes of Health and Mayo Clinic.

In other words, the best examples of contour line art techniques aren’t stuck in dusty textbooks. They’re on posters, product packaging, tattoos, and your favorite illustrators’ feeds.

Putting it all together: your mini practice plan

If you want a simple way to use these examples of contour line art techniques: 3 practical examples plus a few extras, try this short weekly routine:

• One day: Hand studies – classic, blind, and continuous line.
• One day: Desk still life – basic contour plus some cross-contours.
• One day: Portrait practice – quick contour faces from a mirror or photos.
• Bonus day: Outdoor sketch – a bike, a tree, or a building façade.

Rotate through these, and you’ll quickly build a library of your own real examples of contour line art techniques. Over time, you’ll notice your lines in every kind of drawing—comics, realism, fantasy art—becoming cleaner, more expressive, and more intentional.

FAQ: Real examples of contour line art techniques

What are some easy beginner examples of contour line art techniques?

Some of the easiest examples include drawing your own hand, a simple mug, a pair of scissors, a shoe, or a potted plant. These objects have clear edges and recognizable shapes, which makes it easier to see where the contour lines should go.

Can you give an example of contour line art used in real life?

A clear example of contour line art in real life is a continuous line portrait used on a poster or album cover. Another real example is a line-art logo of an animal or object—just clean outlines with minimal or no shading.

Are blind contour drawings actually useful, or just a weird exercise?

They’re very useful. Blind contour drawings force you to slow down and truly look at your subject instead of drawing from memory. Even if the result looks strange, this kind of exercise is one of the best examples of contour line art techniques for sharpening observation skills.

Do I need shading to make contour line drawings look good?

No. Many of the best examples of contour line art techniques rely only on line. You can suggest depth and form with line weight, cross-contour lines, and smart use of overlaps. Shading is optional, not mandatory.

How often should I practice these 3 practical examples?

If you can spend even 10–15 minutes a day on one example of contour line practice—like a hand study or a quick still life—you’ll see improvement within a few weeks. Consistency matters more than long, rare sessions.

Contour line drawing is one of those quiet skills that makes everything else in your art life easier. By working through these examples of contour line art techniques: 3 practical examples plus several bonus variations, you’re building sharper observation, steadier hands, and a stronger sense of form—all with nothing more than a pen, some paper, and a bit of focused attention.