“A drawing is good when it tells us something we do not know, reveals some aspect of truth which we have hitherto been unacquainted with; and very good when its convincing execution brings acceptance of its reality”, so wrote the artist David Bomberg.

Drawing is communication: all children draw and even as adults it remains instinctive to us, and for many is the yardstick by which art can be measured. Art in schools and art colleges has always encouraged students to draw to resolve problems, to map out work and as a medium unto itself.   The joy of drawing can be its immediacy. For David Hockney drawing has been a major part of his work: in pencil, crayon or pen he has recorded every aspect of his life, from the swiftest sketch with a Rotring pen to more considered studies in pencil and crayon.

But drawing is not just about pen and pencil: artists such as Roger Ackling use the focused rays of the sun through a magnifying glass to draw the landscape whilst Michael Craig-Martin draws huge pictures on walls with graphic tape.  Younger artists such as David Landy, Chad McChail, Paul Noble and David Shrigley use traditional pens and pencils to observe or imagine in intricate detail urban life, common or garden weeds or simply to wryly comment on the everyday.  

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