Ligne claire

Ligne claire (French: [liɲ(ə) klɛːʁ]; Dutch: klare lijn [ˈklaːrə ˈlɛin]; both meaning "clear line") is a style of drawing created and pioneered by Hergé, the Belgian cartoonist and creator of The Adventures of Tintin.

[1] Hergé started out drawing in a much looser, rougher style which was likely influenced by American comic strip artists of the late 1920s and 1930s, such as Gluyas Williams[2] and George McManus.

Much of the "Brussels school" started to use this style, notably Edgar P. Jacobs, Bob de Moor, Roger Leloup, and Jacques Martin,[3] many of whom also worked for Tintin magazine.

For example, Van den Boogaard used the simple, clear style to set up a conflict with the amorality of his characters, while Tardi used it in his Adèle Blanc-Sec series to create a nostalgic atmosphere which is then ruthlessly undercut by the story.

A recent serious clear line artist is the Dutchman Peter van Dongen, who created the Rampokan series about the Dutch colonisation of Indonesia.