Customer Reviews

The Sketch Book for the Artist

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Too often I find these "all-inclusive drawing" books a collection of poorly executed scribbles and, forgive my jaded opinion, pedestrian junk. By this I mean lots of shallow work by the author and others - all of which I find immediately forgettable once the regret of having looked at the book in the first place passes.

This book is an exception; it shows many of the author's works (well executed and fun), and is also beautifully illustrated with inspirational and exemplary works by significant artists from the Reniassance to the current era.

Contrasted with many other books (indirectly referenced above), this appears to be well researched for illustrative examples. Pencil (graphite), pen and ink, chalk, etc. are well represented. The reproductions are great and should help create new ideas and directions.

The table of contents is too long to reproduce here so if you have any doubts go look at it in the store first. For me, I found it fun, inspirational, and well worth the money. I purchased it before Amazon had it available (N.B. this is the US version of "The Drawing Book" also available from Amazon) so it's a great buy at this price.

I found myself combing through this terrific book over and over, and learning something new every time. Inside you'll find a compilation of drawings by masters and makers, drawing exercises,practical advice, photographs and reproductions. The author groups two or three representations, arranged in diverse sketching themes ranging from "Gods and Monsters" to "Abstract Lines" and "The Body." Whatever your level of drawing expertise, you can benefit from the author's clear and understandable commentary, fresh perspectives, and easy-to-follow instructions. This book will inspire you to expand your ways of seeing and approaches to drawing a wide range of subject matter.

I own just about every drawing book and have learned a little from each one. What makes this one stand out is the beautiful artwork in it. I found it inspiring. Instead of looking at the pictures wishing I could do something like that, I took my supplies out and actually tried them. Of course they turned out almost as good as the pictures in the book....NOT! But the point is that this book was a good motivator to give it a go and learn so that the next one will be better. IF you're looking for a beginners how to book, I would suggest you pass on this one for now only because I think it's a book you will appreciate more once you have been drawing for a while. It's a great book for inspiration and I think if you team this with Danny Gregory's "Illustrated Life" you will find endless inspiration and ideas to get you going.

Length:: 1:24 Mins

This book is published by DK is an encompassing look at sketching. It's not an instructional book although you can get lots of ideas from looking at the classic and contemporary drawings included. Some of the sketches are from artist Sarah Simblet, and others from a myriad of artists.

There isn't much covered on the techniques. While there are topics like composition, light and shadow or perspective, they are mainly to introduce such concepts to beginners.

The book is heavy on subjects. The main chapters are on animals, botany, architecture, still life, body, portraits, costumes, imagination and many more.

It's a general guide to sketching and understanding the different sides to it. It's a bit too general for me though. For drawing books, I prefer those that are dedicated to specific subjects.

It's an interesting book to flip through, and isn't too expensive.

The US version of this book is "Sketch Book for the Artist". There's another edition with British English called "The Drawing Book".

(There are more pictures of the book on my blog. Just visit my Amazon profile for the link.)

Sketch Book for the Artist offers a complete guide to drawing using step-by-step demonstrations showing how to discover and refine one's inner talents. The idea is to create and fill a personal sketchbook, learning from the masters in a series of drawings that show different approaches to a range of subjects. Beginning artists will find this user-friendly covering everything from basic materials to techniques.

This book is great. It has a bit of everything. The history of art and the tools. Techniques with the tools. Some pages on some how to's. There is a lot of artwork to look at and plenty of exercises to follow.

This book is a fantastic work of art. Unlike all other books that try to illustrate the concepts with crappy sketches and drawings, drawings of this book (even the quick scribbles) represent the concept while it's a beautiful work of art.

If you thought you couldn't draw, need inspiration, want a small little memory project to take on vacation go no further. I love this author. I am just learning to draw and this book is wonderful. Drawing is hard work but it is not about just the image. The book is alive with ideas.

I purchased this book for a drawing course and loved it! There are great examples and explanations...I am definately keeping this as a reference for later drawing endeavors!

I can't help but think in most books of this kind the artwork used is amateurish, but the artist used in this book are top quality, including the author.