Greetings Ladies and Gentlemen, this is Jerry Stith or the founder of an American folk art program called ball Point Pen Art. This program is based on what a ballpoint pen can do as an art instrument, medium or movement. I'm introducing what a ballpoint pen can do as a drawing instrument. A ballpoint pen is the only pen system that arrives with an oil based ink and th ...at's extremely important because of what it can do!

The ballpoint pen has three major characteristics. The half tone line is made from a full tone ink plus dark rich colors and a very long flowing or bold line. Those three things have revolutionized the Pen and Ink art movement plus represent grounds for my Ball Point Pen Art program. I've been drawing for forty-one years as an artist so displaying or publishing such drawings are of much interest, within my life. That means I'm not focusing in on mixed mediums or other forms or artworks. If you're interested in altering ballpoint inks or drawings you should construct your own program or site. I hope you can understand that simple stance!

What is a ballpoint pen or art? A ballpoint pen is a delivery system that provides the user with an oil based ink. Oil based inks arrives from the manufactures as a full tone color. That’s exceptionally important because of the international achievements produced by such endeavors. An oil based ink produces the subtlest camera ready line in art history! That’s extraordinary if you like elevating the sensitivity level of graphic art or take interest in developing ballpoint pen art history. Ballpoint pen artists love the power or excitement of a very, very tight rendered drawing because that’s a demand Classical Realism places on us as masters. Needless to say, thinking, planning out your vision, patience and exception drawing skills are needed to carry out such a mark of excellence.

In the old days I used an extra-fine tip manufactured by the Parker pen company. That remarkable tip was on the market in 1980-82 if my memory serves me correctly. Drawing with those tips were like using a nail with ink. Today, there’s an ultra-fine tip produced by the Schefields pen company. They have a model or brand named Elan which has an ultra-fine (0.5 mm) tip. If perfection as a graphic artist is your goal then obtaining an ultra-fine tip is a must in my opinion! I've never used a camera-ready tool or instrument that could deliver such a narrow, delicate, sensitive or subtle line. A graphic line such as that elevates the sensitivity level of mankind. That indicates we have to redefine what sophistication, eloquence, grandiose, spectacular, superb or the term magnificent. A new line brings on a different standard, correct!

I hope those two paragraphs are perfectly clear or to the point because they express my professional views on those outstanding ballpoint pen tips. Those extraordinary subtle lines stand on their own, don’t need to be altered or changed in any size, shape an form. I want ballpoint pen inks all to be ISO/DIN rated, permanent or archival. I don’t have any interest in erasable ballpoint pen inks or people too weak to draw with dark colored inks in this particular art movement. Inkers are playing hardball because we chose a steadfast art medium therefore I suggest weak artists to use a pencil. If you desire to learn do a thousand quick sketches!

The second reason I love an oil based ballpoint pen ink is because of the deep rich colors! Pen and Ink has been around for three or four thousand years before most other art mediums. Unfortunately dark rich colors never got developed until an oil based ink arrived on the scene that became tooled to fit a ballpoint pen by J.J. Load and fifty years later via the Biro brothers in 1938. All pen systems throughout the world use water based inks except a ballpoint pen. That’s why they never had dark rich colors plus what made a ballpoint pen outsell all others systems!

Reality comes in living color therefore we ballpoint pen artists can certainly appreciate the increased oil based colored inks coming from many pen companies based throughout the world. Now we can draw our pictures in a more realistic manner like many other art mediums have been doing for the past century or longer. What a pleasure or joy that is my friends. Our ballpoint pen art movement is absolutely or completely based on drawings, sketches and doodles! Now we can make our drawings pretty as a picture! What a pleasant concept that is my universal friends currently tuning in from around the planet. I remember the old days when a ballpoint pen only came with a black ink. When a blue ink appeared I thought how magnificent or great that was as a change of pace. Years later Bic came out with red and green which meant two primary colors were than at hand plus much more could be done.

Next, I'm interested in collaborating about the dark rich colors an the oil based inks. I personally think that the Pen and Ink art movement was held back for centuries do to a lacking of brilliant rich colors. Life arrives in living color therefore so should our ballpoint pen and ink art movement in my opinion. I was researching materials on the Internet and located twenty-one different brands of colored ballpoint pens or refills being manufactured worldwide as never before. That's exceptionally delightful or great news to this particular artist. I also found an ultra-fine ballpoint tip being produced by the Schefeild Pen company and those refills come with I think nine colors.

The Pen and Ink art movement is over four thousand years old and that makes it one of the oldest in history. During most of that time span most inks came in black. Over the past fifty years people have been thinking of manufacturing colored inks and those would be water based. In 1938 the Biro brothers retooled J.J. Load's patent of 1888 in order to manufacture a ballpoint pen than got distributed worldwide. Around 1965 colors start getting introduced within the ballpoint pen industry. Prior to that bottled colored inks were made for dip, fountain and tech pens. Those were water based, light in color, pale and really thin inks. Not much to brag about yet better than nothing. Unfortunately those weak colors could not stand up to other mediums. A ballpoint pen now arrives with many colors and is rather formidable among other mediums. Please remember that each and every art medium has its own virtues, qualities and public or can do things the others can't do. That means they are all unique!


The third major quality of a ballpoint pen revolves around its oil based ink reserve. A Bic’s thin plastic ink reserve is billed as having more than a half mile of line work within it so that should indicate the metal thick one approach the mile mark which is lots of fun or spontaneous creating. What a blessing that is if you’re putting in twelve hours a day sketching, doodling or drawing particularly if outdoors because there’s things blowing or moving around. Unfortunately most artists are working inside and or from a photograph. I personally love working from life or quickly and with many different colors so a ballpoint pen is perfect. A ballpoint is also very portable and exceptionally easy to operate. Don't children start using a ballpoint pen at an early age?

Very seldom do I notice an artist drawing outdoors or elsewhere throughout our society. It seems that working from life has become a quote “lost practice or art“. I also noticed a great decline of Pen and Ink drawings being displayed in galleries, museums or public places not to mention ballpoint pen drawings. Will anyone please show me any major pen and ink sites, magazines, papers, journals, galleries, museums, schools or publishing houses. Does the absence of such surprise you knowing that its one of the oldest art mediums in history? How can a four thousand year old art medium or movement not get exposure if billions of pens are being sold?

The first thousand years of pen and ink was controlled by a cut quill feature. That’s really a long time for something not to evolve or improve. I believe the first inks often got made using ash. Metal nibs like the quill dip pen next surfaced, the inks became more refined, darker and sometimes in browns. Wood staffs with metal most have been a great improvement not to mention improved inks. The metal nibs improved and took on the shapes of today’s Speedo which are excellent for drawing or calligraphy. As an artists I loved the India black inks because they were the thickest, blackest and most permanent. They also worked better with a brush or as a wash.

If we look at inks we can see some serious changes taking place over the past fifty years. Felt tips, blanch, roller ball, jotter, uni ball, markers, high liners, gels or things like a sharpie have sky rocked in the sales departments and all of those are water based. Cartridge, fountains, tech and dip pens also have a water based ink systems. All of those pen systems are introducing colors plus new archival inks and that’s all great terrific for those using such. Ballpoint’s use oil based inks, are introducing synthetic resigns, liquid, security and low viscosity inks. There are also erasable inks for the weak plus the spectacular India inks. I think the greatest advancements have been made in the color and archived (ISO/DIN) ink departments! Having an international reputation for having a permanent art medium or ink is an exceptionally positive achievement or desired result in this artist’s opinion!

Ballpoint pen tips are stronger than all other systems which made them the greatest carbon copy makers. Carbon copies revolutionized worldwide societies by making triplicate examples of a business transitions used for record keeping. That altered or changed the business world or communities through history. Today a ballpoint arrives with multi-facets, stainless steel, ceramic and tungsten carbide precision engineered tips. I’m pleased to see tremendous strides are being made within the ballpoint pen industry because that make our live much better. Next maybe we’ll see elaborate casing like the fountain pens collectors advertise or display at their shows?

How can hundreds of billions of ballpoint pens be sold, get used and not become popular as an art medium? Why does the art world distance itself from ballpoint pen drawings, new artists or mediums? I also notice artists attack each other, disregard business practices, don’t learn about pricing and take no interest in their own art movement or community? Our art community has countless millions of people within its ranks yet fails to organize, unit or develop into a lean mean fighting machine such as the commercial artist. Were are the artists looking out for their own concerns like many other special interest groups throughout or societies? Oddly enough artists actually wonder why their art isn’t get bought, become confused about not having a name, a good reputation, things published or popularity in their neighborhoods’?

Pen and Ink has been around thousands of years yet has no home base, organization, groups, society or unified foundation. How can growth, credibility, success and continued growth take place when investors, collectors, galleries and museums think you’ll be worth more after you’re dead? Think about a business or field of interest that doesn’t honor, recognize, develop, support or help promote new people or mediums surfacing within their ranks. After that imagine a statement like, You’ll (your art) will be worth more or something after you’re dead! How many times have you been told that as an artist, my friends? How about, too many times! When you tell people that you're an artist what sort of social status does that provide you?

In the automobile, electronic, space, computer, plumbing, solar, aviation and construction industries everything new or advanced is treasured as the best yet in our art community new mediums are discounted and ridiculed even from other artists! Would someone representing the art world please explain why our community is failing yet keeps on supporting non practical standards? When will the art community advance or modernize their views plus return to Classical Realism? Today we have monkey’s or an elephant doing abstract paints that sell for a couple thousand dollars yet masters being caste aside or snob for using a new medium or for not having a name.

Tradition, culture, heritage, art and the people producing those interest are a national treasure. If you’re self employed as an artist and make your living producing works that represents those interest just like you my friends. Artist are on the front lines, independent business owners and often on the cutting edges of society. We’re the one’s on the street, in the market place, offices, hospitals, public buildings, parks, shopping centers, homes, theaters, schools and many other places therefore we see it all. Then we make pictures to show others of our visions, thoughts, dreams, stories, lives and past only to be rejected by our own peer groups. People love art yet hate artists. Tell a bank you’re and artists and desire loan or a credit card.

After such adventures most pull ourselves together then run across those that dominate our art communities and find out we’re thrown under the bus or out of the car. Everything you’ve done, learned, saw, experienced, think, represent or know becomes worthless because you haven’t passed what they call the “test of time”! What does that mean? That means you’ll have to start from the beginning, sell your self short, give up your ambitions to conform to their interests that are basically designed for your demise. If you aren’t rich, don’t have a degree, are without a name, haven’t been published or been displayed in a major gallery or museum you’ll have to pay a price.

No matter how old you are they say, Do you have a name? Next they ask, How much money do you make or where have you been? They ask questions about things determined or controlled by others which have nothing to do with your art! Well how long have you been doing art? Does that mean you’re going to pay me according to my years of experience? What about how much do you charge? Do you have a degree, credentials, certificates or job qualifications to support your rates and if you don’t how can you charge more than me, if I do? On top of all that you want me to give you half the money down for something I haven‘t seen! If you found a gigantic diamond, gold nugget or product that is a must the buyer could for the most part careless about you or your past. The person purchasing your amazing find is only interested their angle or profit margin. Unfortunately that’s the opposite of how our art world or community operates. Our dealers, galleries, publishers demand their pound of flesh if you’re interested in quote obtaining a name or recognition.

Does the Internet make a difference? Is having over one billion people surfing or researching the Web effect those of us on with sites? I’ve traveled much throughout my life and enjoy the stability of having my materials available anywhere I go within this country or overseas. I can tell people or give them a business card in order to have my things seen. Locally I can publish my art, stats, information, my words or wisdom and not get censored by around me. Being able to publish things worldwide without the locals, art community or social butterflies intruding is a wonderful thing. Many parts of the establishment however don’t recognize our publications because they aren’t a hardcopy. Somehow TV or radio programs are recognized yet a web site isn’t. That’s because they desire control, power or a monopoly instead of fairness. We publish materials that reach one billion people yet they think that doesn’t count. In the old days artists almost never got published locally, throughout their state or nationally yet today we can create history or document, record, archive things Internationally!

Our ballpoint pens are drastically altering the pen and ink art movement. We now have an art movement that offers colored artworks and that has totally upgraded or advanced everyone or thing. Pens can’t compete with other mediums without colors in the fine art, commercial, industrial, cartooning or fashion sectors of society. New colors, long flowing lines and a subtle half tone are something that makes our program unique or special for everyone.

J.J. Load was the inventor of the first ballpoint pen and he was born as an American as am I Jerry Stith. If the ballpoint pen was first invented in the USA that makes it a national heritage or part of our culture and something we can build on as a people. I’m currently publishing more high quality, colorful, detailed or exquisite ballpoint pen drawings than all other places on the WWW. Needless to say that’s “News Worthy”, “Art history in the making” plus a foundation to the largest undeveloped art movement in history! Wouldn’t it be nice if the American people came together to establish a National BallPoint Pen Art archive or museum to honor Mr. Load and me for our programs to better this country? Wouldn’t it be grand for millions of American to earn a living, exports pictures, gain recognition, increase tourism, publications and pay taxes on our works?

Too many things aren’t working well in this country therefore we the people have to organize ourselves in order to find gains. Ballpoint pen art is of the people, for the people and by the people just like our constitution. We live in a Republic that gives us an opportunity to establish new challenges, capitalistic adventures, public programs, individual goals and endeavors. Advancing our artistic knowledge, skills, business contacts, communication abilities, stance in the community and political arena is what has to take place if we ever expect substantial changes. Too many artists or people want something for nothing or expect the other guy to make the changes.

For the past ten years I’ve been publishing ballpoint pen artists, ink information, pen companies, steadfast light tests, opinions, papers facts, links and other important related materials. What we need is support and co-operation from the pen companies, suppliers, art community, tourism agencies and business sectors plus all the artists using a ballpoint pen as an art medium. Bringing all those parts of society together, making profits, archiving history, giving credit to those that deserve it and turning this nation into an art center is a concrete or an exceptional program. Our gains are your gains my friends and fellow Americans. That’s what we use to call our Yankee ingenuity. People from ninety different nations are visiting my new blog and main site and that spells out a wide spread movement, interest and program that many people or this country can prosper by. Cheers, Jerry Stith