Customer Reviews

Composition: Understanding Line, Notan and Color (Dover Art Instruction)

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

 

 

This product is not really worth the money. It is, in many places, just a copy of Dow's other book on Notan -- same info, same pictures, same exercises. Buy one or the other of his two book - not both. If you already only his NOTAN book pass this up. If you are choosing between the two -- the addition of color makes this one a better choice over the former.

I really, really like this book. It reminded me what quality artwork should aspire to and what I should aspire to in my own paintings. Painting is not about copying what you see. It is about adding an element of pleasing design that lifts your painting to a higher level.

Reading this book as inspired me and challenged me to attempt a higher level of painting.

Dow explains 5 principles of composition,notan-the harmony with dark and light shapes, and color theory.

The writing is a little dry in places, but the book is not intended to be an entertaining novel. There are plenty of illustrations and written explanations. The concepts are presented in a very understandable way.

I think this book is best suited for those artists who have some basic skills and experience and who want to be able to add an element of good design to their artwork.

I recommend this book.

A simple reproduction of the classic work.

This is the book Georgia O'keeffe so highly recommended, not the bloated green-covered edition from the University of California press with the hideous *61* pages of useless introduction.

Sorry to enter an non-review of this latest edition of Dow's book (this is more applicable to the '97 edition) but I've been waiting to see if anyone has seen this new edition of what has the potential to be a very good book (however the old edition is terrible).

I have a copy of the 1997 edition by California press (see its reviews here on Amazon). I have all the same complaints as the other reviewers - a very long-winded and essentially useless introduction that's almost longer than the book itself; terrible binding which started to fall apart from the first day I got the brand new book (and every time I touch the book, it falls apart even more); terrible, blurry illustrations; heavy paper and just overall 'don't read me' type of feel.

Dow's book has a ton of useful information about design and composition but I just have a hard time holding onto it or reading it than for more than a few minutes (I've owned the book for over 3 years now and bought it after visiting the O'Keeffe museum in santa fe and reading about Georgia O'Keeffe raving about Dow's book and how much it helped her composition skills.) And since you really need to read this book and do the exercises in it to benefit from it, my desire to absorb the information via osmosis has proved, to date, fruitless.

So, I'd really like to order a better copy which I can actually tolerate holding and reading (which this new edition may or may not be) but don't want a repeat of the same problems as the '97 edition. If you've seen this book in person or own it, please review it here. Thanks!

I agree that the "big green" edition is a bit more ponderous, but found it helpful to have a frame of reference from an academic that I found thoughtful in ways and not so much in other ways. The original textbook, mine was a college library copy so it's in pretty rough shape, has the essence of Dow's approach to teaching design and has some nice color images that I am sure were added during binding. If this version is a replication of the original textbook, it should be well worth purchasing. I find it an interesting comparison to the extremely long and involved textbook I use in my design classes.

cheeres, bill b.

Even though this is an older book, it's a goodie. I was exposed to it at the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum. She followed the techniques in this author's book as the basis for developing her arts approaches. I hope I can apply the clear directions and useful methods of composition described (they're divided by type) for my photography and even drawing projects. The book isn't too massive either, so it feels like something I can work my way through in a reasonable time. Clearly written.

This book is well organized, comprehensive, clearly written, and has many excellent descriptions, exercises, illustrations, suggestions and tips for developing stronger compositions and creating better paintings. The DVD is an added bonus. This book is a must-have for art teachers and for any artist, regardless of their medium.

Yes, this is pretty dated. But the underlying concept of Notan is valid and helpful for all serious students of landscape painting. For an under $10 book that you can read in a few hours - it is definately worth it.

Although most people will probably buy this book for its artistic instruction, I wanted to read it in order to to explore the artistic roots of Georgia O'Keeffe. I admire her work, and this information was part of her training. The book is interesting as well from an historical point of view in seeing how an Asian approach to art and esthetics influenced Dow, our culture back then and all of the arts.

The first version of this book was printed in 1899. A little out of date with art vernacular.