白描 is a technique of painting that relies primarily on the use of brushline in monochromatic ink to define form, express movement and capture the essence of the object portrayed.
The ink itself is usually black, but occasionally silver or gold is used, and the markedly fine yet taut quality of the line distinguishes
hakubyou from ink painting *
suibokuga 水墨画, which incorporates broader, fluctuating brushstrokes and shading. This technique was also used in copying finished paintings, or for preparatory sketches or underdrawings. As a finished work,
hakubyou rejects color, believed to inhibit the freedom of brushlines.
Hakubyou was actually considered to be more expressive than polychrome painting, especially in its use of modulated lines to suggest volume and movements.
