Customer Reviews

The Artistic Anatomy of Trees (Dover Art Instruction)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Many years ago I learned a very subtle, but critical lesson from one of the grand old masters of oil painting, David Leffel. The first impulse of any artist is to ask "How do I _____?". How do I paint a vase? How do I paint a tree? How do I paint water? How do I get my work into the galleries?, etc. Upon careful scrutiny it may be observed that by asking "How do I", all sensitivity toward the subject is replaced by a desire to control.

It is ironic that many artists so crave adulation and success that there is little energy left over to excel at their art. Those who learn to paint well have little competition, because there are relatively few people that paint well. We must therefore remind ourselves to ask why things are the way they are, and by careful and humble observation appreciate what we are looking at. The "How" cannot fail to manifest once a certain depth of observation is attained.

A book like this helps because it makes us aware that the shape of every tree - trunk, limb and branch - have written into them a history of survival, of harsh winters, damaging winds, competition for sunlight, and even a respect for their neighbors. A little patience yields a new perspective and appreciation for these large, silent denizens of our planet, and an unmistakable improvement in subsequent landscapes recognized by artist and patron alike.

This book may not be gorgeous, but it goes into excellent detail about the structure of tree branches, shapes, buds, fruits and leaves. Everything from the shape of branches in a windswept oak to the way the leaves and flowers are structured is covered for flowering leaf trees. Conifers are not covered. The composition of groups of trees as well as examples from artwork are here. The plates are rather hazy and old, as befits this classic work, but it still is a standard for European trees.

If you are interested in becoming a botanical illustrator this book will be a welcome addition to your library. The charming illustrations and discussion of botanical details will be most useful to you. If however you are interested in an all-around book dealing with various types of trees and ways to use them in your landscape artwork you will be disappointed.

The book dates from 1915 and is in black and white, which in itself makes it less useful than one in color would be. Even so it could have been much more generally useful to the painter if it had concentrated on identification of various trees and their shapes, with textual descriptions of their color.

Instead it begins with small pictures of paintings by the 'masters' which have included trees, and then proceeds to discussions of composition. Later chapters do indeed have illustrations of several trees, and details abound. These ensure that there can be no excuse for the reader to misrepresent the joining of twigs and so on, of various species. The last 40% or so of the book gives the most minute botanical details of a number of varieties of trees.

There are useful illustrations and text in the book, and it is inexpensive enough to make me willing to keep it on my shelf, but there are books on drawing trees that are far more helpful to the painter.

Some good quotes:
"Often we see trees which seem to not to have a true balance. To see them in nature is one thing, to live with them in a picture is another - and undesirable. To give them an insecure appearance in our drawing, and to be unaware of having done so is inexcuseable."

Much information is given to prevent this type of error.

"When the roots show above the ground they serve as it were for a stand, and the trunk holds itself the better for them."

" Massed trees afford an opportunity for strength of colour and simplicity of tone. ..., and need not be frittered away into bits of light and dark or oddments of colour."

The hundreds of pictures in this book are in black and white but does not hinder the all the great information given.

I thought the 1st 3 chapters were excellent, the remainder of the book could have probably been condensed into another 3 chapters but instead goes on for much longer than that and begins to get more into botany than art. Still, extremely informative and the 1st 3 chapters alone are worth the price of the book. Excellent plates and illustrations give visual references to mentioned material. A must read for anyone interested in landscapes.

A wonderful landscape book that tells you everything you need to know in a very truthful way compared to other landscape books that I know. It is a right book for any serious artist and Would-be artist to enhance his or her knowledge in this field for if their pursue is to learn a solid fundamentals. I have read throught the book and have followed the guidance to observe reality with what it teaches and I have benefit a lot from it. You won't be disappointed with the contenes that it has offered.

Written in a time when good draughtsmanship was the basis of western art practice. It is therefore dependent on the same idea that impels one to study human anatomy. There are no step by step instructions on how to draw trees. You are expected to study and learn. This book is what it says it is - a detailed examination of the structure of vegetation. Useless for the beginner. An excellent reference for the professional. The authors own drawings are exquisite.

Excellent work that would require many hours to master the technique. Very good book for the artist's library.

I rated this a 2 only because it is not what I expected, I'm really not qualified to rate it's accuracy. This book is more a botanical treatise than I expected. Lots of artwork and diagrams for the person who wants to draw/paint the most accurate trees in great detail.