Books

[MurkyDreams]

Hey guys,

What are some good art books? I'm still in high school, so I can't really be taking art classes outside of school. What books have helped you guys out in becoming a better artist? Any list of books would be appreciatd.

[Deth Jester]

Hey you can take classes now.. you can go to a local Junior College.. and take some lifedrawing classes.. etc...

check out a few course catalogs at local J.C.'s and see if they have any classes after you get out of school for the day..

I guarentee you will learn more going to a class then out of a book...

and you really dont need a book.. just draw from life.. draw what you see, not what you think you see... plus there are tons of great resources just right here on this site.. go to the tutorials section.. and check those out..

If you really are looking into books.. do a search for books.. or art books ... on this site, Im sure there has been a bunch of threads...

Also start working on just pencil or charcoal drawing.. keep it simple.. once you learn to draw well, then move onto painting.. and a peice of advice.. don't go and buy a wacom tablet... learn to draw and paint.. first.. then after a couple years when you can draw and paint well.. go get one... but really learn to mix colors, and paint and with the real deal.. that way you understand color theory etc...

but seriously look into taking classes at a JC... Or look for a art school around where you live that teaches.. perhaps a atelier that has classes... check out www.artrenewal.org they have a listing of all the acredited ateliers.. Im sure there is one in washington..

good luck

peace
-mike

here is a JC
http://www.ccs.spokane.edu/ClassSch/Spring04/sp04SFCCcr.pdf

they have art classes.. couple figure classes.. check them out... If you can't drive.. have your folks take you..

[CIM]

"Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain" for starters.

[MadSamoan]

For learning the figure, pick up The Human Figure by John H. Vanderpoel. It's an inexpensive book, only around 8 dollars and it's in print.

[MurkyDreams]

Thanks for the help guys. I looked into the weekend/evening classes, and the prices seem very reasonable. There's also this program called running start at my school. It lets me go to a community college during school hours, and has it count for a high school as well as college credit. I'm not sure if it'll let me take just one or two classes there, but I'm gonna look into it. I don't want to do bad in those classes if I do it tho. I have a 3.92 gpa, and I don't wanna ruin it. My parents would kill me too:( Well... I think I'll be up for the challenge, it'll just take hard work. I have art at my local high school, and it was my first time really taking art a bit seriously(bcos I had my grade on the line;) ) I dunno... my teacher says I've improved considerably, since I came into the class, and that I just needed a bit of guidence and motivation.

Anyways... back to the TOPIC:

What books should I get? I should do some considerable practicing and try to get better as soon as I can, since I might be taking those classes next year. I just need direction... I draw stuff around my house and things from life all the time, I just want to learn some basic techniques...

Btw, I already read drawing on the rigght side of the brain... It's a good book! I borrowed "The Natural Way to Draw" What do you guys think about this book?

[Deth Jester]

the natural way to draw is okay.. I dont recomend it that much though... actually if you dont mind footing the bill you can pick up some good tapes at:

http://www.draw123.com/

His perspective tapes are awesome.... Marshall is a great teacher... I had him for a private anatomy class at Troika Games..

some books he used for anatomy were..

Bridgemans constructive anatomy... Bridgeman is a little more higher in level.. and his writings suck, but his pictures are great to learn off of... he breaks stuff down into eash geometric shapes pretty well..
link:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0806930152/qid=1078343344//ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl14/002-7649326-8666426?v=glance&n=507846


Umm a good book for breaking stuff down, but bad for learning to draw anything other than super hero type people is.. Burne Hogarths stuff.. He breaks it down an interesting way..
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0823015513/ref=pd_sim_books_4/002-7649326-8666426?v=glance&s=books

Last book that I borrwed was..
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0823030148/qid=1078343588/sr=1-4/ref=sr_1_4/002-7649326-8666426?v=glance&s=books
by Robert Beverly Hale.. it also helps break down the human figure.. but a lot of the text doesnt make sense... *shrug*

You can also check out the loomis books for free online and print them out if you desire.. some great info in those...

http://www.saveloomis.org/
more loomis
http://www.sundownmedia.net/loomis.htm

for animals
posted by MIKECORRIERO
he says DRAWING ANIMALS: VICTOR AMBRUS. good charcoal like drawings. 120 pges.. not step by step but written explanations of his thoughts and on how to go about sketching animals

for animals
ShawnYe writes:
I have a few books on animals that I personally would like to recommend.

Cyclopedia Anatomicae

Half of the book is on the anatomy of animals but with only limited animals. I guess this is probably the book you are searching for. I bought this same book but title was' Anatomy Drawing School'.

The Art of Animal Drawing by Ken Hultgren

I really like this book, his structures of the animals is really strong.

How to Draw Animals by Jack Hamm

Althought this doesn't really cover on anatomy and only touch on the basics but I find some of the little notes are quite helpful. The rest I have would be wildlife artbooks and animals references which I always find myself referring to most of the time.


I would also say after you are on your way.. give it a while.. you could check out Gnomon's DVD's.. but id hold off on those for a while... they are a little more advanced...

good luck man,
peace
-mike

[ghost79]

i just discovered a REAL old book, but it's really great! - "the practice and science of drawing" by harold speed. It's a classic. i couldn't find it at a book store- typical, they only have lousy art books at book stores, but you can get it on amazon.com.

[djmez]

I was recommended the Harold Speed Book (The Practice and Science of Drawing) by Alberto Ruiz, who is a ridiculous artist I found online. I bought it and have consulted it far more than any other art book. If you had to buy only one book...drop the thirteen bucks on this one.

[jester]

It's funny, I had this Harold Speed book, too, but I I couldn't make anything of it and recently sold it. Maybe I expected just something else and that's why I was disappointed.

Jester

[MadSamoan]

Harold Speed's books are a goldmine of knowledge especially if you want an insight into how turn of the century painters worked. Like Vanderpoel though, the hurdle is getting past the archaic wording. The text can be very dry.

[ghost79]

have you guys read his book on oil painting? how is it?

[MadSamoan]

It's a must have book if you're serious about painting.

[Silvertone]

I recently got "Drawing People-how to portray the clothed figure" by Barbra Bradley.

This might help you out with your sketchbook,"cafe drawings" which sooner or later I'm sure you'll start doing along with life drawing classes.

[J.Mac]

i recomend The Practice & Science of Drawing by Harold Speed

-Jesse

[BRANDISH]

i've read both "science of drawing" and "oil painting techniques and materials" by harold speed, and can recommend them.
i also found them quite easy to read.

[samwell]

It's in German so you might have trouble reading it. But It is the best book out, hands down for basic form, anatomy, and bones.

Die Gestalt des Menschen
by Gottfried Bammes

$105.00 on amazon.de

:beer:

[BRANDISH]

"gestalt des menschen" by bammes is imo the best anatomy book.
and, his book on drapery "körper und gewand" is also great, though the only other book about this subject i know is hogharts'. i'm austrian, and so these are easy to read for me,... . i've also got his animal anatomy, but haven't read it yet.
there is an english edition of one of bammes'
anatomy books, but its out of print, afaik, and used ones sell about 250$, what i've seen. oh, i just checked on amazon and they have it for 350$.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0785800549/qid=1080081808/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl14/104-4980608-1572719?v=glance&s=books&n=507846

[jester]

I don't know whether they ship to the US but you can get "Die Gestalt des Menschen" from 2001 fro just 25 EUR! (roundabout 30 U$)

http://www.zweitausendeins.de/

Jester

[MurkyDreams]

Are there any books with a structured study plan or lessons you can follow along with? Anything, besides the natural way to draw... I just want something a bit more structured than normal reference books. Or... how do you guys use your reference books, such as bridgeman to help you practice?

[nil]

Originally posted by MurkyDreams
how do you guys use your reference books, such as bridgeman to help you practice?

this would make a great Round Table subject.

*waggles eyebrows towards the powers-that-be*

i think the best place to start, in regards to books, are the Loomis books. theyre well written, easily understandable and most (if not all) of them you can get for free online.

[jester]

MurkyDreams, search for Kimon Nicolaides, The Natural Way to Draw. It's from the 1930s/1940s as far as I remember and Betty Edwards took a lot from him, but it's still in print.

Jester

[MadSamoan]

Murky:

Just copy the drawings in books like Vanderpoel's and Bridgeman's, Loomis, etc.. At first, you'll probably get caught up in trying the copy the technique, but gradually, by crossreferencing the drawings, you begin to understand the overlapping forms, construction, proportion, crosssections, etc.. The Charles Bargue Course Book that just came out is a good way to go too.

There's a thread on Bargue drawing in the main forum

Bargue Drawing (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=12104)

[painterskeys]

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[sixBlade]

Please ignore the above poster, hes spamming every book thread advertising his book to try and get people to buy it. I imagine its not worth your time buying it; after all, theres very little useful information you can cover in 160 pages.

Admins any chance of banning this guy?

[PeggyChung]

well i like this book i got called "keys to drawing" by Bert dodson

it isnt based around anatomy or anything, just drawing in pencil.

it give you 55 specific keys to improving your drawings
48 mini lessons that help master techniques
8 evaulation checklists

the checklists is pretty good because it makes you question your work and how to make it better

example of excercises :


-drawing contour of your shoe
-study the illusion of light
-forshortening
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0891343377/qid=1082528668/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/002-6434950-5758429?v=glance&s=books

btw heres loomis' and another dudes online book you can look through. http://www.fineart.sk/