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Beautiful on it's own.
This small tome makes an excellent coffee table book just on the merit of beauty alone.While a beginning watercolorist might find the art a tiny bit intricate, the clear, step by step instructions would guide them to a sucessfully finished project.Everything is covered; surfaces, paper, brushes, paints, mediums, techniques & colors, to how to use the illustrations to draw your own pictures.An expert might bypass the basic instructions but surely would find inspiration in the artwork and palette. ... Read more

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One of America's most widely admired artist offers soundadvice and answers questions of technical and creative aspects of the art. Thirteen full color demonstrations all begin with a value sketch and detailed descriptions of how the picture was painted. John's irrepressive enthusiasm is evident through out. Includes 37 of his favorite paintings. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Amazing, Beautiful. One-of -a-Kind Treasure
This is one of the most beautiful watercolor books I have.John Pike has a wonderful way of simplifying the complex--both in his paintings and also in the words he chooses to explain about his life as an artist andhis working methods for the beautiful artwork in his book.There are 13 demonstrations and then a gallery of his paintings along with explanations of how he approached the painting. There is also an interview with John Pike at the beginning of the book. The demonstrations are entrancing, and Pike does not hold any "secrets" back from the students.It is as if John Pike is standing beside you explaining to you step-by-step how to paint his painting.The paintings are loose, with lots of light and contrast.It's a wonderful book that ever watercolor student should hold on to.

The best book on watercolor technique
I checked out this book from the library more times than I can count before discovering it was still in print. It is absolutely the best book I've found on watercolor technique(and I've checked outmany of them) and the only one I own. John Pike's style of working and his discussion of technique and choice of materials helped alleviate my anxieties about getting started in watercolor. He keeps things simple. I particularly like his philosophy of using value sketches as a guide before starting any finished work, and the step-by-step color photographs showing a painting's evolution. His accompanying text is also very helpful. I've been painting in watercolor for 8 years and have many books on the subject. Mr. Pike's book is still the one I turn to consistently when I need help or inspiration.

A Beginner Finds a Friend
As an absolute beginner in watercolor, my first stop after my first lesson was to the local library.Joining an existing watercolor class of long-time painters left me scrambling for the meaning of what everyone wastalking about and doing.In my tiny town nestled in the Colorado Rockies,there were only half a dozen watercolor books in the library, and by somegood fortune, John Pike's book, published many years before, had beendonated.Even as a novice, I could see that it was far and away the bestof the lot, and when I took it home and started reading and studying, Iknew I had found a friend.Well, I kept that book out for over two months,and paid a hefty late fee to do so.

I thought Mr. Pike's books were outof print, but on a whim, I decided to search his name on Amazon.com, and itwas exciting to find "John Pike Paints Watercolors."I admitthis is not the same title I found in the library, but the book reviewdiscusses his style of writing and teaching.That style overcame the fearI had to try, to begin, to learn, to dare.He is a teacher! And because ofhis writing, I was able to begin to catch up to my classmates faster than Ihad imagined.His paintings are full of life, interesting in subject, andinspirational to a beginner.I am privileged to know that I will have hisbook on my own shelf.

Insight to watercolor
I first got this book in the library and now must own it.Pike's insights have opened new doors for me as a relatively new watercolorist.His methods, techniques and explanations make this one of the few books on thesubject that I want to have for ready reference rather than just anoccassional read.This is the best artists book I have yet to come across!

Insight to watercolor
I first got this book in the library and now must own it.Pike's insights have opened new doors for me as a relatively new watercolorist.His methods, techniques and explanations make this one of the few books on thesubject that I want to have for ready reference rather than just anoccassional read.This is the best artists book I have yet to come across! ... Read more

Product Description
Here expert watercolorist Cathy Johnson shows them how in her practical step-by-step manner.Johnson shows how to create 83 different textures, including fruits and vegtables, hair, glass, metal, fabric, flowers, fur, skin and various natural textures.Each texture, and their many variations, is demonstrated by Johnson's watercolor sketches, all with specific call outs to illustrate individual techniques. Artists can apply these techniques to their own work to create fabulous watercolor paintings that almost seem to "breathe."

Cathy Johnson is an artist/writer/naturalist. She is also the author of two additional North Light Books: Painting Nature's Details in Watercolor and Watercolor Tricks & Techniques. She lives in Excelsior Springs, Missouri. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (28)

Great Book!
Love this book.If you are someone who doesn't do well with structured teaching this book is for you.I love the examples and the images are very inspiring.You feel like your peeking into someone's personal journal.Love it!

creating textures in watercolor
I have an artist friend and a group of us do painting together. From her training she recommended this as a must have. It is an older book and I was fortunate to find an old copy which was in excellent condition through amazon. Its a keeper!!!

Great book / Great price
I have been taking a watercolor class for a little over a year.A classmate was looking at this book during class and it caught my attention.After leafing through it, I decided to order it for myself.It is a great book, informative, great reference and definitely worth having.I received it promptly, in great shape and just as promised.I highly recommend this book and the company.

Never was received.
It was so long ago I had forgotten I had ordered this book.I didn't receive the book.

Hints and Tips Galore
Most books are like a three-course meal, a beginning, a middle and an end, to make sense you have to read them that way, this one is like a box of chocolates, you take the lid off and just look for the ones you like.
Best of all, you don't have to take in everything at once, I found I was using bits from it within an hour of receiving it.
Designed to aid the more experienced watercolorists (my opinion, the author may not agree with me) it is not a book for the raw novice since it assumes a certain level of skill, but if you are looking to add an edge to your work, to lift it from the ordinary, this may well be the best dollars you will ever spend.
Buy and Enjoy

... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Essential to any watercolorist 's library!
Tom Hill's enormous talent and technique is simply and clearly displayed for any watercolorist to learn from. Photographs and the resulting paintings of eleven diffrent locations are used.From a farmhouse in midAmerica to a seaside English village. From a desert oasis to a highmountain lake. From a Mexican market to a hill village in Greece. Eachlocation gives a chance to see how diffrent places with their individuallight conditions, architectual features and natural wonders can beinterpreted.Each location is used to illustrate how to solve compositionproblems, how to enhance the visual impression, and how to choose colorsand values to help the artist express the impact of the location. For manyof us painting on location gives us the ability to stop time.To recordforever the special feelings we had for a particular time and place.TomHill's book helps us to better interpret those feelings in watercolor so wemay share them with others. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

Good reference for different techniques
Although was not exactly what I expected, it is a good reference for explaining different methods, good price and good addition for my library

Revised Classic on Watercolor Technique
This book is truly excellent as a compendium of specific techniques for producing a wide variety of visual effects in watercolor painting.Any beginning or intermediate watercolorist should find this book invaluable, as it would be for any painter with an experimental or ever-searching turn of mind.

Inspiring Instruction
I like the layout of this book, the great photos and the excellent instruction for the full gamut of watercolor techniques.

This book is most useful to a beginner to gain a full understanding of what you can do with watercolor paints and a good brush.

The simple washes are covered and salt technique along with wax, miskit and all the other secrets of obtaining the look and feel you want.

The paintings Hazel Harrison has chosen for this book are inspiring and excellent quality.

I have used this book as a resource for over twenty years and still go back to it for inspiration.

The Encyclopedia of Watercolor Techniques
Very good on different techniques for someone who has mastered the beginning basics of watercolor.Introduces you to a variety of techniques and has good examples and instruction for achieving same.

Encyclopedia of Watercolor techniques
This book is an outstanding resource of techiques that can be used to produce an interesting and varied watercolor. I think it should be part of a watercolorist's library. ... Read more

Product Description
Published in conjunction with exhibitions at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC and at the Haus der Kunst in Munich, this book includes illustrations of many of Lindner's oil paintings and watercolours. Particular emphasis is placed on the subject matter of his imagery as it developed from the late 1940s to shortly before his death in 1978. A consummate pictorial architect, the artist himself believed meaningful content to be of paramount importance. Rich in metaphor and symbolism, in literary and historical allusions, his work set him apart from the mainstream. Although best known for his striking images in intimidating women, Lindner constantly denied that his imagery was either erotic or mysogynistic in intent. This aspect of Lindner's artistic vision is examined. The book also contains a chronology of Lindner's life, and an exhibition history. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Richard Linder- Full house
I grew up seeing Linder's work in illustrations during the 70's as I was an impressional young artist, searching for any art that might build my style.Ido believe Linder's work was underestimated.As Pop Art was the "ism" of the generation, rather than following in the Andy Warhol kingdom (and I do like certain stages of Warhol...don't get me wrong) but Linder followed his own heart , rather than looking for instant fame.

Linder's biography equals his need to be his own person. Born in 1901 in Germany, flewing to New York during Nazi oppression, he passed the pop art phase to continue being his own art director.After doing his illustrations, he began painting images too obtuse for the advertising world.Some say these paintings became bizzare and anti-establishment, but I believe they are images that mirror what was happening in our world during the late 70's.

The book came and I was shocked that it was plastic wrapped at a very inexpensive price and I devoured it, as it has 73 full color paintings taken with beautiful photography and I could not be happier with this book.If you enjoy color and work that has a mind of it's own, this book is for you, just for the color photos alone. I did purchase this book from Amazon.
Joe Coon aka artistjoe monroe (Google,Yahoo) ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Beautifully done
This catalogue documents 164 works on paper in the collection of The Detroit Institute of Arts ranging from the beginning of the sixteenth to the mid-twentieth century, by such masters as Albrecht Durer and Adan Elsheimer as well as an umparalleled selection of German Expressionist drawings and watercolors.

This book was also the first in a series of volumes which fully documented by providing thorough art historical research, of the Detroit Institute of Arts collection of European drawings.As I understand it, the book was published in association with Hudson Hills Press; 1987.A very large hardcover volume and printed on high-quality paper.Out of print now though. ... Read more

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still life in watercolor by david webb review
The book is great. I felt in love with artist's style and wonderful works presented in book. I just wish he had bigger volume editions on this subject (still life in loose style). I have already purchased "Animal paiting workbook" to see more of his works and step demonstrations. ... Read more

Product Description
A painting is only as good as its composition. This dynamic book teaches artists the "golden rules" of successful composition in simple, but effective techniques they can apply right away.

Through glowing examples of his own work, author Robert Lovett illustrates "design principles in action," starting with the basics. He then helps artists advance their skills by showing them how to manipulate other key devices, including: light and shadows; tonal values; repetition and alternation; gradation and balance; centers of interest; points of perspective.

Artists will also enjoy following Lovett's demonstrations which feature seascapes, boats, mountains, rivers, still lifes, interiors, figures and animals. He also includes an engaging series of 10 hands-on painting exercisesWoven throughout are effective tips for working in watercolor, such as wet-in-wet techniques, dry brush methods, color mixing and more. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Great Art Reference on Techniques
This book presents color, composition and design concepts in a pragmatic and easy to grasp manner with detailed examples that reference each subject or technique being covered. Whether you are a beginner or advanced painter, there is more to learn from Lovett's book. Highlyl recommended. Amazpm Verified Purchase.

An excellent resource for learning how to plan a painting.
When buying online, its sometimes hard to know what is inside the book that makes it special.I have tried to outline parts of this books to give you a better idea of what it's about and how things are taught.

This book is an excellent tool for learning about planning a painting and factors that influence a strong vs weak design.The books stated goal is to help artists avoid common design errors and "learn the 15 things that comproise the 'how' and 'why' of design. Beginning with a subject and it's sketch, Lovett teaches the steps of designing the painting and "arranging the marks, shapes, colors and tones." The book is filled with vivid illustrations and step-by-step demonstrations.

After a brief chapter on materials, Chapter 2 teaches "the how and why of design--the 15 things you should know, explained and illustrated."Then, the 7 Tools of Design are explained--line, shape, tonal value, size, color, texture, and direction.The "why" encompasses 8 things--unity, contrast, dominance, repetition, alternation, harmony, gradation, balance.

Lovett takes several beautiful and varied paintings and explains the tools of design in each that give it strength, unity, and interest.The tools of design for each painting are explained, and then the "design plan" of each is explained---the marks on the paper, and how those marks will be arranged--example:--unity, contrast, dominance, repetition, alternation, harmony, gradation, balance.Lovett then goes on to explain how contrast can be the layout, but making one tone, value, shape, etc more dominant than the other can create unity.

HE then takes different paintings and explains the "main arrangement" of the design (ex:unity, contrast, etc.)He shows such examples as using a dominantly wet-wet method in a painting, but then saving the center of interest to be painted with sharper, dry, crisp edges to contrast.Also, the harmony of color, gradation of colors from the top to bottom of painting and using contrast of light to make it a well-designed painting

PART 3 of the book is on "Training Yourself to Plan Your Painting".It begins with Chapter 3 on "Seizing the essence of your subject with sketches."---choosing subjects, choosing the best light, choosing to draw, choosing total recall.Next--Painting on Location---the factors the interfere with concentration and the need to "simplify the subject." Lovett states, "You must learn to see the subject as simple masses of tonal value.."Lovett encourages the reader to try to draw small subjects directly in watercolor without any preliminary pencil work as a training tool.

Lovett teaches about what the painter needs to study about the subject he plans to paint---the direction of light, the viewpoint, the lack of detail, the different shapes, the scale, the color and tone.Each of these is explained with a small example painting

Chapter 4 is about Planning the picture--how you want it to look when it is finished--the arrangement of light and tonal values and how to make a tonal value plan, color plan--what will be the dominant color, where to place a small patch of complementary color, what color would harmonize thedominant color, etc.. He explains "a simple way to select a harmonious color scheme".Lovett shows a photo of a scene and then illustrates a tonal drawing of it, then how he uses different color sketches to change the mood.

Next--"Plan your attack"---choosing paper, wet-wet, dry brush, edges, tonal value arrangement, etc., each with examples of his work to make a point.

Next--Lovett demonstrates how he sets the tonal key with the first wash and follows with further steps of making contrast of tone and color

Chapter 5 is "Designing with Perspective" where he explains how to establish the vanishing point, basic principles of perspective.Lovett then shows a series of stepped demonstrations of paintings of buildings inVenice.Lovett explains how he uses perspctive and planning ahead to draw the eye to a certain part of the painting.

Lovett's book explains further on how different elements of a painting contributes to the whole, and demonstrates what happens when design elements are removed from a painting.Next 6 Step-by-Stepdemonstrations are given, each with a clearly stated objective of the the demonstration, the technique used (ex: wet on dry), the tools and arrangements in action, materials the artist used including pallette, brushes, paper.Each demonstration covers a different strategy (ex: " Placing Color in the Area of Most Interest"...."Designing with Color Temperature and Line"...etc.These beautiful paintings are done of scenes in Italy and Wales.

Chapter 7 is "Designing for Mountains and Rivers", where Lovett again gives Step-by-Step demonstrations with a clearly organized objective, techniques, tools (ex: repetition, shape, color contrast, balance, value) used, and materials used.In the mountain scene of New Zealand, Lovett explains how the repeating triangular shapes of the mountains is what caught his eye, aside from the overall breathtaking scene..

Next, a River painting demonstration.
Later in the book, Designing Seascapes, harbors, and boats.
Then, Designing still life and interiors--all with demonstrations and clear objectives, and tools and arrangements used to make it a strong design.

Chapter 10 is about Designing figures and animals, and step-by-step demonstrations are also given.

This is a wonderful book--one of the best I have seen on compostion.The artwork throughout is breathtaking.It is well-organized and easy to follow.It is a book that you will probably want to keep.Outstanding.

Excellent, Comprehensive
Robert Lovett's book is different from many watercolor books that simply show a picture and have a brief blurb on the picture.
Lovett has a very thorough and systematic way of teaching and explains each lesson in great depth. This book tackles the key elements of creating an effective painting and shows probably over 100 of Lovett's paintings. Lovett is a gifted teacher and painter and his book is highly effective. Lovett has a very colorful, yet traditional painting style, so if you are looking for experimental or california school loose, look elsewhere. ... Read more

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DRAGONS
VERY INFORMATIVE ON TECHNIQUES, BACKGROUDS & COLOR SCHEMES. ONE OF THE BEST ART BOOKS I'VE PURCHASED! ... Read more

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How to paint your world in watercolor … and have fun doing it!

The day Sterling Edwards watched an artist paint an entire sky with three deft brushstrokes was the day he committed to trading his tiny oil brushes and photorealistic style in favor of big, bold strokes of watercolor. In the years since, he’s developed not only a wonderfully fresh, luminous painting style, but also an approach that takes the intimidation out of this beautiful but often-mystifying medium. In this book, he shares both.

· Initial chapters lay the foundation for successful paintings, from choosing the right brushes to achieving vibrant colors, interesting textures and strong compositions.

· Step-by-step demonstrations illustrate techniques for painting rocks, skies, trees, foliage, buildings, water and other landscape elements.

· An easy-to-follow, four-step painting process makes for easier starts and stronger finishes, complete with rich darks and sparkling highlights.

· Eight complete painting projects cover a range of breathtaking scenes and seasons.

Whether you’re dipping into the medium for the first time or you’re a watercolor devotee on a quest for clearer color and more personal statements, this book will help you make the most of the time you spend with brush in hand.

“You can have beautiful colors, intriguing shapes and interesting textures, but values are what make the painting inspiring.”

Customer Reviews (8)

Breathtaking watercolors
When I open a watercolor book I am usually impressed, but I only reached the table of contents before I was blown away by these watercolors. What a gift, Sterling Edwards. (fyi, dickblick.com, the art supplier, has many instructional DVDs by this artist.) Thank you!

The Best in the Field
After reviewing this book on Amazon UK site, I thought I would do the same on the US site.

I have no problem in saying that, this book is the best I have had on Watercolor painting. I have known of Sterling Edwards now, for a couple of years. To me he just gets better and better in all he turns out. This book will give artists who have been painting for years,! something to aspire to. Sterling,holds nothing back, in the way he shows you how he has put a painting together. He has worked hard in the time he first started to paint, and in my opinion, he is one of the best artists with us today.
If you are going out to buy just one book on the secrets of Watercolor painting...Make it this one.

Good luck to you Sterling. You are a real credit to the art world.

A must for every watercolor artist.
As a watercolor artist Sterling Edwards book is one every artist should have on their shelf. The instructions are clean, clear, and concise. I'm excited about the information in Sterling's new book. A friend of mine (well known artist Luke Buck) first told me of Sterlings beautiful watercolor work. since learning of Sterling's work I'm glad to say that this book is one every artist should read. Sterling's influances remind me of another well known watercolor artist whom I never got to paint with. If I could give this book ten stars I would. I'm glad to see Sterling Edward's new book and hope I get the opportunity some day to paint with him. A great buy for the watercolor artist.

Creating Luminous Watercolor Landscapes
A good reference book on landscape painting with watercolors. I found it helpful and I've been painting for years and I have taught watercolor painting. One for the library.

Marvelous book
Gives lots of instructions and tips for watercolor painting.I'm going through it like I am taking lessons and painting each lesson-learning as I go.Beautiful pictures and great instructions make this a helpful learning tool.I love this book. ... Read more

Product Description
Have you ever been amazed by watercolor paintings that seem to spring to life before your eyes? Would you love to be able to paint with watercolors? Now, you can. Watercolor Painting For Dummies shows you the fun and easy way to create breathtaking paintings so beautiful you won’t believe you made them yourself.

This friendly, guide gives you hands-on instruction and easy-to-follow, step-by-step exercises to help you master the basics. Filled with full-color projects and sample paintings, it shows you how to work with color and texture, practice composition, and make smooth changes. You’ll find out how to select the best tools, materials, and supplies, practice basic brush strokes, and use the three best common techniques: flat wash, graded wash, and rough texture. Discover how to:

• Select the right brushes, pigments, and paper
• Mix colors and work with white
• Create backgrounds and foregrounds
• Transfer your drawings to watercolor
• Avoid common watercolor mistakes
• Experiment with texture using salt, sponges, plastic wrap, and more
• Find your way around the color wheel
• Practice the principles of design
• Plan compositions using thumbnails
• Work with one-point, two-point, and three-point perspective
• Paint fabrics, shiny surfaces, and organic textures
• Paint landscapes, seascapes, animals and more

Complete with strategies for improving your painting immediately and marketing and selling your work, Watercolor Painting For Dummies, is the resource you need to make your creative dreams come true. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

can't get your hands/eyes out of it ! so great , do not hesitate,just get it
learning withthis book is like bitting in a cake every time you turn a page ...and you want more and there IS more!
informations are plenty, easy access and so clear, simple ...it makes you feel the artist you are !
opportunities to practice are there available and well detailed to succeed.
This is ONE book you need to read/get/have , no hesitation !
thanks so much for all the work done to give access to this wonderful media !
what's next ? ...

I recommend this book
If you are a beginner and can only afford one instructional book, this is it. Colette Pitcher offers such a range of advice that you will walk away with tons of knowledge and will also get your moneys worth. I highly recommend this book.

Watercolor Painting for Dummies
I am pleased with this book and I have purchased several other ones
and the service is very good and I receive the books in good time.

Colette Pitcher answers all your questions.If you are struggling learning watercolor, please, please get this book!
I had been struggling to teach myself watercolor, and was making a mess! I paint in oils, but learning watercolor was another whole world, and I needed help. Then, I spied "Watercolor Painting for Dummies," by Colette Pitcher.I had previously ordered other books, which were good, but oh, my, this book is OUTSTANDING!!Her tips cover all the problems one may have, and her demonstrations are wonderful!I am not only reading the book all the way through, I am studying it, page by page,underlining in red what I need to do, and underlining in blue what I should not do, and am learning so much.For instance, I didn't understand the reality of "Bias" in paints, i.e., where some blues contain a bias of yellow, and some reds contain a bias of blue.I learned through this book that you don't want to mix a blue paint with a bias of yellow, with a red paint that contains a bias of blue.Now I understand why I was getting dull, muddy colors! Her tip about having a wet sponge to dab your brush on, to get rid of excess water has saved not only my paintings, but many towels, also. The way I honestly view this book is like finding gold on my doorstep, because that's what it has done to my understanding of the do's and don'ts of watercolor!This book is just excellent not only for beginners, but for those well-seasoned in watercolor.As you can tell by my raves, I am wild about this book and cannot recommend it enough!Get it - you'll love it! Julie

Qué pena!!
Es el mejor libro que he leído para aprender a pintar con esta maravillosa técnica de la acuarela.
Qué pena que no esté en español....... ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (4)

review for fairies and fantasy
This book has 62 pages of beautiful manga-style artwork. It's a very good reference when you're out of ideas. it gives plenty of examples on different eyes, wings, mermaid tails, clothing and fairy types. It also gives a good tutorial on how to draw the body in frontal view and the head in frontal and side view. For fairy homes and dwellings, there is only one page, but you can always use your references and imagination. Another thing I hoped was in the book was how to draw hairstyles, but as i said before, you can find references. I also liked how the book gives you ideas on how to be aware of the composition(layout)and how to improve it. The color theory section is a great part of the book as well. It gives you a nice color wheel and examples of different color schemes to try out. Pages 18-62 are dedicated to 12 step by step projects to try on your own. For each project it provides an inked layout to trace or scan and the colors used for painting; However, you are free to choose whatever colors you like and, you can alter the layout to give it your own look once you've traced it.

Excellent
I purchased this book for my daughter last year, she was 8 years old and she loves it! She has a talent for drawing and watercolor and has used this book to help her tune into her art! One of the fairies she created using this book won her 1st place in the MN State Fair! She uses this book everyday to reference ideas like eyes, color and composition!I would recommened it for any one who wants to learn the art of manga!

great books for new artist
I ordered these books just before christmas & receive them in time for christmas. My daughter is a new artist (and getting better) that needed new books to show her to draw things a little easier, & new ideas too. She loves the ideas it gives her & ways to do things too. A good book for her startup collection.

Highly Recommended
Even though manga style isn't the style I work in, I have found this book to be a wonderful reference.

I've often found that the best books on watercolor technique aren't the generic ones, but ones concerning a certain subject. Meredith's techniqueis soft, subtle and rich, a type not usually represented in the average watercolor book. Best of all, she isn't imposing her style onto the reader, but offers a jumping off point. How-to art books so very often merely show how to paint like the author, very rarely does one come along that teaches inspiration and how to find it in practical ways.

Even if an artist is not quite up to Meredith's drawing ability, this book is worth going through for its ideas and techniques. This is especially good for aspiring young artists. ... Read more

Product Description
Walter Foster's classic How to Draw and Paint series provides aspiring artists with an exceptional array of art instruction books featuring all subject areas and media. Each title includes easy step-by-step exercises as well as finished illustrations or paintings that will inspire artistic talent in anyone.

Packed with practical information, helpful tips, and fundamental techniques, the How to Draw and Paint series offers a complete library of resources to which artists of all skill levels can refer again and again.

What you'll learn from this book ...

Information on painting on rice paper

How to create a variety of strokes with a Chinese brush

Methods for mixing colors with a Chinese brush

Step-by-step techniques for creating floral and bird paintings in a Chinese style

An introduction to painting Chinese figures ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Excellent Value
This book is an excellent value. It is short and has a few compostions. It provides step by step instructions for those compositions. Many of them are beautiful. I particularly love the birds.

Nice,Fresh Approach
I've purchased 3 other Chinese Painting books recently, looking for one where I like the style presented. Lucy Wang is one of my favorites. Her style is brighter and looser than most "traditional" Chinese painting. I don't always like the Spontaneous style that she employs, because it can look very blotchy. But because she uses a lot of bright color, and less of the black ink, I don't find it objectionable in her paintings. She's also contemporary in her use of watercolor paper, rather then the traditional "rice" paper (actually mulberry or other plants). So your strokes might bleed a bit more than hers do, if you use the rice or Sumi-e paper.

The book features a short tutorial on the materials and strokes. They aren't gone into in much depth, but the projects all have arrows showing the direction of the brushstrokes. Then she moves on to 14 projects. There's one Siamese cat picture and a traditional style landscape; the rest are florals, nearly all of which feature a bird as well. Wang does 3 of the 4 traditional "Four Gentlemen" subjects, the Bamboo, Plum Blossom, and Orchid - oddly, the Chrysanthemum is missing. She depicts flowers and birds from all over the world, not just China, including 2 hummingbirds. The flowers show nice variation, but many of the leaves seem kind of generic - I would have liked them to be more specific to the plant being rendered.

I like the large format of this edition - it really lets you examine thepictures in detail. BE ADVISED, however - as far as I can tell, this is the EXACT same book offered in the Walter Foster Chinese Brush Painting Kit, just in a larger size. If you already have the brushes and other materials, this book is good to get; otherwise, the kit is a better value.

My 2 cents
Nice for beginners, easy to follow instructions, even older children can enjoy this with minimal guidence.

Chinese Brush Painting
This book is an excellant reference and guide for the beginner and advanced artist alike.Several attractive subjects are demonstrated with step by step examples of the tradiitional brush strokes used in this ancient art form. ... Read more

Product Description
More and more painters are traveling with the intent of capturing new experiences in their art. Whether doing so to keep a journal of their thoughts and feelings on the road or simply a visual record of the journey, the finished product is a work of art in itself.

Watercolor Journeys provides readers with a look "over the shoulder" at the personal watercolor sketchbooks of internationally experienced artist Richard Schilling. Built around fifty key questions or problems artists will encounter while keeping a travel journal, it's packed with hundreds of tips and techniques born from a lifetime of painting-on-the-road experience. Schilling's actual journal pages are reproduced to clarify each and every lesson.

Readers will also find solutions to the unexpected problems of journaling on the road, such as dealing with rain or insect attacks, or sketching the local populace without being noticed. Schilling's fascinating, sometimes humorous anecdotes will keep readers enthralled even when they aren't painting!

Richard Schilling has been a watercolor artist for forty years. He teaches at the Loveland Academy of Fine Arts and is a frequent contributor to many fine art magazines, including The Artist's Magazine, American Artist and Southwest Art. An avid traveler, he recently completed a fifteen country tour of Europe and the Middle East. Schilling lives in Loveland, Colorado. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

My favorite watercolor book
I've had this book for a couple of years and it is clearly my favorite since I read it over and over again.The author does a lot of ink sketching with watercolor washes, a style that I find I really like.Good tips on materials and methods, but the examplepaintings are what keeps bringing me back.I recommend this book highly.

Inspirational
Watercolour Journeys is packed full of tbe artist's beautifulwatercolour sketches and paintings along with dozens of ideas and notes on how to keep a travel journal. I collect artist's journals and this book is one of my favourites. Richard shares himself as he writes and draws. By the end you feel you know him.

Inspirational not instructional
This book is a gem at conveying the rewards of creating a sketchbook journal. Much of it is made up of sketches of all types with short explanations about the location of the sketch. In a few cases the author explains how he created some of the effects. So it's not instructional as much as it is inspirational. It made me start sketching anew.Most of all the sketches are so good that they serve as some great examples to follows.

Superb vendor
My merchandise arrived in excellent condition and promptly.I would definitely purchase again from this vendor!

Excellent Book
I was overjoyed to get this book.I am working on improving sketching skills and painting skills and this book is an inspiration.It is also a lovely book to just pick up and look through. ... Read more