Drawing from Within: Unleashing Your Creative Potential [Paperback]

Nick Meglin (Author), Diane Meglin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1999

The aim of this book is to answer questions such as how can we connect with our own innovation, how can we allocate the artist within. The author shows that drawing is a powerful means of self-expression.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

It is a joy to be taught drawing by both the coeditor of MAD magazine and his daughter, a senior psychiatric social worker. One gets humor and insight, creative techniques and psychological support, and two interpretations of the word bonkers. In 14 chapters, these authors break all the rules and promise to turn even the most inhibited, artless person into someone who draws for the pure love of expression. This book is less mystical than Jeanne Carbonetti's The Zen of Creative Painting: An Elegant Design for Revealing Your Muse (LJ 7/99) and should find a very wide audience. Highly recommended for all collections.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Nick Meglin has authored books and numerous articles on drawing and illustration and has taught at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. That experience, along with seminars conducted at the Norman Rockwell Museum and other art institutions, led to the development of his unique approach to drawing for personal satisfaction and sheer enjoyment of the creative process. An editor of MAD Magazine for most of his professional career, his text proves to be as fun to read as it is informative.

Diane E. Meglin, DCSW, MSW is a Clinical Social Worker on the faculty of Duke University Medical Center. She has published articles and held workshops on a variety of topics within the mental health field. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (August 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446674044
• ISBN-13: 978-0446674041
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 7.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,252,980 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great how-to and sketchbook, March 18, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Drawing from Within: Unleashing Your Creative Potential (Paperback)

This book is a worthwhile addition to my "how-to" shelf for a number of reasons. It's one of the few books that addresses the idea of removing your own stumbling blocks to improve your skill as an artist. Very often, the biggest obstacle to getting something down on the page is yourself: some bad habit you've picked up, or a good habit you haven't developed. Better still, the book has lots of sketches by well-known artists and illustrators that you wouldn't get to see otherwise: a nice look at their own thinking and drawing habits!

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An inspirational and motivating guide!, October 1, 1999

By 

Dr. Andrea S. Gould (Long Island, New York, Tucson AZ.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Drawing from Within: Unleashing Your Creative Potential (Paperback)

Drawing From Within by Nick Meglin and his daughter Diane, empowers the reader to reclaim the entitlement of sensory pleasure that accompanies the experience of "unselfconscious" drawing.

The action of putting pen to paper conjures in many people a fear of "misrepresentation," a reluctance to commit for fear of "doing it wrong." The Meglins address this limiting belief by reframing the concept of making art. They inspire the reader to reclaim the right to the pleasure of taking risks and trusting one's own perceptions.

In Drawing From Within, the Meglins speak with one encouraging and humorous voice. Based on years of experience in teaching drawing (Nick) and mentoring self-development (Diane), this inspirational father/daughter team creates an atmosphere of willing experimentation for the reader. In this context, even the inexperienced can feel safe enough to remove negative self-judgment and thereby take the time and space to produce spontaneous and satisfying drawings. An enjoyable and validating read!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A first-rate book!, July 30, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Drawing from Within: Unleashing Your Creative Potential (Paperback)

This book is not just another "how-to" book. They're are lots of those! Rather, this book is about self-discovery and its visual expression. It's a new approach which facilitates learning, even for the professional artist. Try it!