Aftekeningen

Aftekeningen is a Dutch term that refers to drawings or marks made by tracing or copying lines from an original source. It can denote the tracing itself, a copy produced by transfer methods, or more generally annotations added to a drawing or plan to indicate revisions. The practice is common in art, design, and technical drawing, where a master drawing is copied onto a separate sheet using tracing paper, carbon paper, or a lightbox to reproduce the composition, proportions, and line quality without directly drawing from the source.

In art education, aftekeningen serve as preparatory studies that help students study structure and technique, and they also enable the production of multiple study copies. In professional workflows, aftekeningen are used to transfer a design to another medium, to create templates, or to document changes in a plan or drawing.

Historically, aftekeningen were important in times before photographic reproduction, when copies of master drawings were made by hand for study, teaching, or distribution. Although the digital era has reduced the need for manual tracing, the concept persists in contemporary workflows as a method of copying, annotating, or transferring drawings.

Thus, aftekeningen encompass both the physical trace sheets and the set of marks or notes used to guide later work on a project. They occupy a place in the history and practice of drawing, design, and visual communication.