5 comments about Oil Painting Techniques and Materials.

1. Art instruction of this nature are hard to come by. This book should be entirely redone - different format, larger illustrations in color, a little updating - not too much. Speed is so interesting and helpful. He organizes what you already know, introduces you approaches you never thought of, shares his artistic philosophy and generally fills in the gaps in one's education. Glad I bought it.



2. Harold Speed has in this book explained everything an oilpainter needs to know. Very informative, and a great learning tool.



3. I enjoyed this book very much, in spite of the writing style of the day. The author knew his subject and was able to convey it to the reader. I've been painting for forty years and he had pointers and tips I have never seen or read anywhere else. I have put some of those into practice, and feel that my paintings are better for it. Even with the run on sentences and the not so humble opinions interwoven into it, this book is a valuable addition to anyone seriously studying representational painting, and I don't think it any more biased than many books written about painting which favor modern or non representational art.



4. This book is one of the best books out there for painting, it offers a wontderful insight to the craft of painting the classical way. I read it multiple times and I keep learning from it. The drawing book by the same author is just as awesome.



5. As a professional artist I have been a long time admirer of Harold Speed's books. If you are interested in learning the craft of painting the human figure in oil, then there is really no better primer than Oil Painting Techniques by Harold Speed. From my own experience in painting I have come to find that Speed's approach is the most intelligent and manageable of any I've studied. It's a method that applies to any subject, not just figure painting. No cheap gimmicks or "tricks," just good common sense and a clear explanation how to break down the spectrum of visual data into the most important components.

5 comments about Creating Textures in Pen & Ink with Watercolor.

1. This book arrived in good time, excellent condition and I love it. A wonderful book that gives good information that is easy to follow. I will use it a lot. Thank you so much.



2. I was able to get good use of "Creating Textures in Pen and Ink with Watercolor" from the very first day after receiving it (page 128 to be specific). Claudia Nice is a master of the pen and ink medium and the instructions and illustrations in her book make this an essential addition to any artist's library.
   As do most technical books, she begins with a listing of materials needed to accomplish the techniques that follow, and some basic application techniques, pretty standard for any such book. Although I do not so easily dismiss the crow quill dip as she does, it is a matter of little disagreement. I find rapidographs somewhat limiting, but what of that? It is a minor thing, a matter of personal taste.
   What follows the introduction is nothing short of extraordinary as she demonstrates techniques for achieving the textures of wood, stone, water, hair ... all exceedingly useful in that artists and illustrators are constantly called upon to produce them. These are practical techniques that every illustrator needs to know.
   The table of contents provides a sampling of the kinds of techniques covered from the illusion of transparent objects, the glisten of metals, the textures of vegetation and how to create full landscapes. It is richly illustrated and the narrative is just detailed enough to inform but not so much as to be ponderous. Instructions are specific to each illustration, so this is an excellent quick-reference when you need a specific texture in your work, but I highly recommend reading it through first. The wealth of information presented here is such that you will put it to use immediately. I will be returning to it frequently in my illustration work.



3. I received this book a couple of days ago and as soon as I started leafing through the pages I was a bit disappointed. After further perusal the disappointment was somewhat abated.
   
   The author has an easy way of explaining the hows and whys in the first chapter. There really is some useful information there! The remaining chapters are divided into types of textures and techniques, i.e., metal, fur, trees, skies, etcetera. This is where I found myself wishing for more detailed instruction. Don't get me wrong, the information that is provided is useful and the images show nice pen & ink detail, I just want more detail about how to accomplish the textures shown with watercolor. I would also like (and expected) to see at least 3 or 4 more step-by-steps as on p.37 with the surf and ocean waves. I haven't done pen & ink in many many years and this book makes me itchy to get started again, which is why I made the purchase. So, to that end thank you Ms. Nice.



4. I like alot of the techniques in the book. Basically that would be why I use the book. Sometimes I go back to the book to just refresh my memory. I have a few books I refer to, and it is nice to have a variety so that I can always come up with something new and creative in my own art.



5. If you really want to learn how to use pen & ink along with watercolor than this is the book you need. She shows great detail and helps the artist, either beginner or advanced, how to improve on their paintings.

5 comments about Art from Intuition: Overcoming Your Fears and Obstacles to Making Art.

1. It wasn't clear to me this was a drawing and painting excercise book. I don't need exercises, just freedom from artist block. Artist block is what I entered in the search and "Art From Intuition" came up. It may be a good book for the novice artist.



2. I returned this book for a full refund. The art examples within were anything BUT inspirational--in fact they were down right depressing!



3. As an art teacher and an art book author, I'm always looking at the competition for additional insight and inspiration. This, along with David Friendly's "The Creative Way to Paint" and my own book, are among the best books on the subject. Worth every penny!



4. Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/RQDTY7WE71WJB "Art from Intuition" book review by Big Puppet.



5. If you are an artist, want to be an artist, are interested in creativity, work with creative people, want to relax, enjoy making a mess or just want to live a fuller life...buy this book! It is full of ideas for helping you listen to what you need to hear, getting you unstuck and helping you enjoy yourself. It is destined to be the book on every artist's shelf.

2 comments about Lessons on Shading.

1. this book on shading is what it says, a lesson on shading, it would be a good book for someone jsut beginning to learn



2. In the 19th century artists at all skill levels learned how to shade a form correctly. Many even well known artists of today have less technical skill than a so-called amateur artist of the late 1800's. This reprint from Dover Books was published in 1900, way before the attack on "Academic" art in favor of the propoganda espoused by 20th century artists, museum curators, critics and teachers that proclaimed that classical drawing was passe and that artist's didn't need to learn technique before "expressing" themselves. Well, if you want to learn to expressive yourself masterfully when you shade a form, I would heartily recommend this book. Although concentrating on charcoal shading primarily, and pencil hatching in a secondary sense, the information presented here is clear and will translate well into any media. It's a very reasonable price, easy and quick to read, and has information that is rare to find in the rash of "how to" books of today written by artists with barely passable skills in drawing and shading.

5 comments about Elements of Writing Fiction - Description (Elements of Fiction Writing).

1. I highly recommend this book if you are writing your first novel. Contains valuable, insightful information.



2. This it one of those books that I can neither thing of a real good reason to recommend it, nor can I think of a good reason to tell people to avoid it, so it gets three stars. Monica Wood covers the topic fairly well and has some good suggestions, but there isn't much unique matterial in the book. As I read, I found myself skipping sections of the book and I don't feel that I miss anything by doing so. She has some different views about some things than other authors, most notably the "show, don't tell" rule. But few authors agree on that rule. She seems to have more of a character driven approach to writing, so if you do also then you may find her book more helpful than one written by someone with a plot based approach. The occassional jewels that are scattered throughout the book make it worth buying for many people, but others may find it difficult to read.



3. The best writing book I ever read. This may sound strange, but I couldn't put this book down. It is filled with example after example on what bad descriptions vs. good and great descriptions look like and how to write them. I would highly recommend this book to any one who likes writing.



4. This is an excellent writing aid.
   
   Here's why: If you want to know how to make a watch, most writing aid's only give you the correct time or make testimonials about the quality of specific watches. You never learn how to make a watch. This book details how to make watches with excellent examples of the significant steps in the process. And it illustrates how the right steps work, with examples of how other things dont work as well. Plus it provides examples of how hybrids sometimes work better for what you want.
   
   The author is impressive because she knows what she professes, and knows how to make you competent too.
   
   This book will make you happy.



5. As a writer, I've always considered description to be my strong suit, so I read other books in this series before I picked up this one. I wish now that I'd read it first. Monica Wood clearly articulates the difference between strong description and weak description and provides so many examples that it is easy to see her point, and easy to make the leap in your mind and change your way of thinking about description. I realize now that although I've always been good with imagery, my images lacked purpose. I'm a photographer by nature. I've been busy presenting my readers with snapshots when I should have been painting art for them. My images were clear, vivid and real, but they told my reader little about the underlying structure of either my characters or my theme. My descriptions created texture, but didn't incite emotion or meaning. I looked at my manuscript and realized I've got 70,000 missed opportunities. So far, I've revised three scenes and already I know my characters better. The writing is tighter, the characters sharper. Those scenes pack so much punch now that I'm faced with the opposite problem I had before- how to let the story breathe for a bit between those scenes. Pacing is going to be a different challenge for me now.

5 comments about The Complete Guide to Chip Carving.

1. This guide is helpful on the face of it. It will be intereting how quickly I absorb the basics and begin to branch out to my own work and designs. The guide looks very useful.



2. This is an excellent book and it is very complete. If, however, you have a number of Barton's previous books, there is not much new in this one, and that includes the designs shown. So, if you are an experienced chip carver and know Barton's work, I think that you would be disappointed with this book.



3. This book is a good companion to the Chip Carving DVD by Wayne Barton - it reinforces many of the items presented in the DVD, shows numerous finished examples, and provides patterns and techniques for creating patterns on the wood you use. Highly recommended!



4. Not only is this a complete book on chip carving it is well written and easy to understand with many excellent examples.



5. I carve wedding plates, jewelry boxes, and borders on relief carvings. This book provides many samples I can use for my work. It is a super book well worth being a part of any chip carver's arsenal.

5 comments about Amphigorey Also.

1. This compilation, being the third in the series, is naturally the weakest of the lot, but it still contains some absolutely enchanting bits of morbidity, including The Blue Aspic, The Glorious Nosebleedand The Loathsome Couple.



2. Edward Gorey is probably best known for the animations that precede Mystery, on PBS. His cartoons have appeared in a wide variety of magazines, and he has published a massive number of books. His Amphigorey series (Amphigorey, Amphigorey Too, Amphigorey Also) collects his works in omnibus form.
   
   Amphigorey Also is the third in the series. It is a perfect introduction for those not familiar with Gorey's work. The book contains seventeen chapters, which are as follows:
   
   The Utter Zoo
   The Blue Aspic
   The Epileptic Bicycle
   The Sopping Thursday
   The Grand Passion
   Les Passementeries Horribles
   The Eclectic Abecedarium
   L'Heure bleue
   The Broken Spoke
   The Awdrey-Gore Legacy
   The Glorious Nosebleed
   The Loathsome Couple
   The Green Beads
   Les Urnes Utiles
   The Stupid Joke
   The Prune People
   The Tuning Fork
   
   Each section is comprised of Gorey's lovely, macabre and often startling cartoons, and his brilliantly clever captions. Gorey has a dark sense of humor. We are talking here about gallows humor. Death pervades his work. Subjects that run through his oeuvre are infanticide, madness, murder, death in general, rain, umbrellas, revenge, and endless word play.
   
   Gorey seems obsessed with his own name. I find it fascinating that he constantly plays about with creating anagrams of Edward Gorey. A few that I counted in Amphigorey were: Dogear Wryde, G.E. Deadworry, Awdrey Gore, E.G. Deadworry, Waredo Dyrge, Deary Rewdgo. There are also near anagrams such as Regera Dowdy. But then, these shouldn't really count.
   
   Gorey's word play builds itself into the structure of some of the chapters. Several chapters are odd alphabets. The first of these is "The Utter Zoo". Each panel and caption describes an animal, whose name begins with a successive letter of the alphabet. These animals exist only in the warped mind of our author. He has imagined animals much stranger than anything to be found in a real zoo. These creatures range from the neat Ampoo to the tragically extinct Zote.
   
   The best of Gorey's alphabets is "The Glorious Nosebleed". Each caption contains a different adverb. The illustrations are glorious, dark, and sinister. The captions are often strikingly funny, and a bit weird: "The creature regarded them balefully", "He exposed himself lewdly", "It was in the trunk presumably". These little vignettes are beautiful, and stunning, as well as being likely to offend a large section of the public.
   
   "The Prune People" is a strange little series of drawings, sans captions, which depict people who have prunes in place of their heads. I honestly can't think of more to say about except this: you will find yourself drawn back to these drawings again and again. I least, I was.
   
   The best of the chapters is "The Loathsome Couple". In this macabre tale Harold and Mona kill children for amusement. The couple were both abused as children. They find each other as adults. They find themselves incapable of sexual relations, and instead turn to murdering children for recreation. This is not a tale for everyone. Most will find themselves deeply offended by this story. But, for those who can recognize the stark beauty, and the deeper meaning in Gorey's words, this is a gem. It is a story to rival anything from the Brothers Grimm (I speak here not of the sanitized fairy tales, but of the gore soaked original's). Gorey's drawings are at their best here. One panel depicts Harold luring a child to his doom. Gorey has no sympathy for any of the characters in this picture (of course, he does have sympathy for all of his characters, it is simply that he chooses not to portray it in this drawing). He creates them was worn, lined, ugly beings who are part of a dreadful and ugly world.
   
   Another story of note is "The Blue Aspic". It is the story of Jasper Ankle. Jasper is an opera fan. Perhaps too much of a fan. He murders to place his favorite singer in a starring role. He ignores his responsibilities until he losses his job. He is placed in an asylum, where he has no access to a turntable on which to play his beloved opera records. As he escapes, his beautiful records are broken. It ends badly. We would expect no less. And, it rains a lot.
   
   Those are the only hints I will provide. I fear that I may be spoiling the stories that I have discussed, and do not wish to spoil the rest. This is a book that must be discovered page, by lovely page. Gorey manages to amaze, surprise, and shock again and again. Most people will, I fear, close this book after the first few pages. They will shudder, restrain revulsion, and try to wipe it from their memories. But for a select few of us, this book will delight for years.
   
   I highly recommend Amphigorey Also. However, I offer this caveat: those with weak stomachs, puritanical outlooks, prudish demeanors, and easily offended sensibilities should beware. If you can't laugh at death, then don't bother* You have been warned.



3. The books in this series (Amphigorey, Amphigorey Too and this one) benefit from the warped wit of Gorey, but the size of the images is so small that it becomes difficult to make out the fine details. I like to read them to my kids (ages 9 and 12) but we have to be all scrunched together to make out the visuals.



4. AMPHIGOREY ALSO is another compendium of Edward Gorey's stories in the form of pen-and-ink drawings with pithy captions. While it doesn't contain his most notorious book--THE GASHLYCRUMB TINIES in the first AMPHIGOREY, I found this to be the most consistent amusing of his three anthologies.
   
   The works here are of several different styles. You have relatively substantial stories, such as THE BLUE ASPIC. This tells the tragic love of the deranged fan Jasper Ankle for the diva soprano Ortenzia Caviglia and is full of jokes that will delight opera cognoscenti while probably eluding all else. Also in this category is THE LOATHSOME COUPLE, a delightfully droll tale of a man and woman who fall in love and discover their mutual passion is murdering children, and THE GREEN BEADS where an impoverished child meets a madwoman who turns out to be his long-lost grandmother.
   
   Another style is that of drawings on some theme. The first book in the anthology, THE UTTER ZOO, is such a work, a collection of twenty-six drawings of imaginary creatures somewhat in the vein of Borges' BOOK OF IMAGINARY BEINGS. Then there's THE BROKEN SPOKE, purporting to be a collection of postcards about cycling, which is wickedly funny.
   
   One will also find writings of totally random humour that explain the rumour that Gorey hit the bottle pretty hard. These include THE PRUNE PEOPLE, a collection of drawings where people go about their daily business and the only off thing is that they have prunes on their necks instead of heads. Also in this vein is LES PASSEMENTERIES HORRIBLES, where various people concentrate on some task unsuspecting that a gigantic passementerie is sneaking up behind them.
   
   This is probably the best anthology to start with in uncovering Gorey's work--although I feel THE OTHER STATUE available on its out from Harcourt is the best introduction to this droll author. This anthology is certainly no collection of dead weight, and the quality of the reproductions is higher than in the other two.



5. The much-lamented Edward Gorey specialized in intricate, ominous pen-and-ink drawings. Doomed Victorian opera singers, alligators, time-bending bicycles, and plenty of creatures strange and grotesque fill "Amphigorey Also," a collection of Gorey's quirky work.

   Included is the cute "Utter Zoo" ("The Ippagoggy has a taste/for every kind of glue and paste"), the tragic "Blue Aspic" (a crazed, impoverished man stalks an opera diva), the amusing "Sopping Thursday" (Bruno the dog looks for his master's umbrella), and the delicious revenge fairy tale "The Tuning Fork." The highlight is the "Awdrey Gore Legacy," a deliciously warped murder mystery.

   Some of the offerings are kind of befuddling, like the disjointed conversation between a mustachioed man and a woman with a geisha hairdo, or the "Eclectic Abcedarium" with its too tiny pictures. But most of them, like "Les Passementeries Horribles" (in which embroidery and tassels act ominous) or "The Prune People" (which is pictures of people with prunes for heads) are amusing even if they make no sense.

   Edward Gorey's delicate pen-and-ink illustrations would be fun even if he didn't possess the morbid whimsy that fills almost every story. Okay, if you are easily offended, then the "Loathsome Couple" will offend you with a pair of crazy killers lure, photograph and murder small children ("They spent the better part of the night murdering the child in various ways"). But he did so in the best of bad taste.

   His slightly warped sensibilities were also shown in the chilly skies and barren-looking outdoors, cute children and haughty adults in Victorian attire. There are occasional splashes of color (like the blue backdrops of "L'heure Bleue"), but even then it tends to be a bit eerie and faded like old photographs.

   The eerie whimsy of Edward Gorey's work is alive and well in "Amphigorey Also." A few of the works are duds, but overall it's a strange and wonderful ride.

4 comments about The Skateboard Art of Jim Phillips.

1. Presented in this book is practically the very definition of BAD TASTE! But, two stars given because if you happen to be into the silly skateboard scene, you'll probably LOVE this one.



2. I bought this book based on the two other reviews on Amazon but when I received it i was a little disappointed. It wasn't exactly what I expected. I wasn't very familiar with Jim Phillips' art before this book. I own other skateboard art books, but this kind of art is too busy for me. If you're a fan of Jim Phillips' art then I guess this book is for you, but it wasn't exactly my taste.



3. I think there is a big difference between this book and the Skateboard and rock poster book. This book comes with full blown pages of closeups of all of or most of Jim's artwork. I'm a hobby artist myself so I'm really jazzed up about this book. Another book to get that is rather intresting is Disposable which covers different skateboard companies and riders but you will be happy with this book here.



4. Jim Phillips is finally stepping out from the obscurity of his drawing board to take a bow for the countless skating design innovations for which he is solely responsible. The skateboarding, surfing and rock & roll art of the last 30 years was trailblazed by this softspoken and humble artuer and the rest if the world has been playing catch-up ever since. Any skater who grew up riding in the 70s, 80s and 90s had these designs plastered on every wall of their bedroom as well as the decks of their boards. The ripples started in Santa Cruz, CA but have radiated out to impact the art worlds of Europe, Japan and Canada. Check out Jim's other 2 books on Rock Art and Surf/Skate art, too! AWESOME!

3 comments about The Object-Lesson.

1. The pictures alone make this book worth getting. If the story had been better, I would have given this book a five. As it is though, the story felt like each page was written separately, to be collected together in the end. Perhaps I need someone to explain the story to me, but it seems like many of the pages are only related to one another if you're in the habit of disengaging your brain from reality.



2. Edward Gorey, most easily recognizable for the opening animation of the television show "Mystery!", wrote dozens of strangely comic picture-books that were not intended for children. The Object-Lesson shines among them.

   The first sentence, divided amongst six elaborately crosshatched panoramic ink drawings, initiates what is only the first of several surreal and non-sequiturial narratives and gives readers the sense that an elaborate story of some sort is unfolding and they are mearly seeing brief snippets.

   Having just read the book, I'd say the effect is of looking out from inside a novel: a story is happening, but the large passages of narration that connect the individual events of "The Object-Lesson" into a single story are as unavailable to the reader as they are to the characters. It's mysterious, it's exciting, it's lots and lots of fun.

   I reccomend buying this and leaving it anywhere in your home where people will be waiting for the maybe-five minutes it takes to finish the book, as the wierdness of it all will make their day that much more fun.




3. This nifty book defies summarization. Traipsing along through 30 pages of illustrations and text, the story draws the reader along a whimsically surreal story, where each event leads inexorably to the next completely unconnected event! The illustrations are black-and-white, stark like the text, reminding one of the whimsical images that featured at the beginning of PBS's mystery show. This book is not to be taken too seriously, but is also not to be missed; it is an enchanting book.This nifty book defies summarization. Traipsing along through 30 pages of illustrations and text, the story draws the reader along a whimsically surreal story, where each event leads inexorably to the next completely unconnected event! The illustrations are black-and-white, stark like the text, reminding one of the whimsical images that featured at the beginning of PBS's mystery show. This book is not to be taken too seriously, but is also not to be missed; it is an enchanting book.

5 comments about The Figure in Watercolor: Simple, Fast, and Focused (Simple Fast & Focused).

1. I am so very pleaseed with this book . It is one of the most helpful I have ever had . I highly recomend it to anyone interested in painting figures and portraits.



2. This book is a treasure. If I could buy only one book on watercolor painting, this would be the book. Each chapter is a small gem of information simply expressed with wonderful accompanying pictures.
   The watercolors in the book are delicious to look at. You get to experience Mel Stabin's process and philosophy.The approach is clear and simple, wise and deep at the same time. The approach is inspiring and speaks to the deeper places inside us.



3. This is a wonderful book with lovely paintings in it and clear prose to help one improve and try new techniques.



4. An excellent book for those who wish to improve 'figures in transparent watercolor....One of my favorites....Jack, Ohio



5. I agree with another reviewer who finds this otherwise beautiful book light on instructional details. I happen to love Stabin's painting style, and I do find copying his paintings to be very illuminating. I still rate this book highly because much can be gleaned from studying and copying his work, which is fresh, economical, and transparent. Perhaps I would rather recommend it, though, for the more advanced artist.