5 comments about Canvas Remix: Techniques For Creating Mixed-Media Accessories.

1. This would be a good book for a beginner experimenting with canvas. For those who have some experience using surface design on canvas you might want to try another book with more more advanced techniques.



2. Alisa Burke has finally produced a book which assumes that the reader is ready for some creative freedom, thus inspiring with ideas and techniques without the need for step by step, copy-cat instructions. This is not a book for those with no idea where to start - this is a book for those who are or wish to be creative and just need the inspiration to let it flow!!
   
   Canvas Remix has given me the passion to pursue some ideas I wasn't sure I was ready to attempt, and to be comfortable with the results one way or another - no rules to say you cant try a project again! It's wild, its fun and it's free-thinking. Be ready to look inside yourself and let your creative diva out!



3. Full of great ideas, very inspirational. Projects that you actually want to do....pieces of art you can really use, and stylish accessories I love wearing! Alisa is an inspiring artist with a positive attitude, a breath of fresh air.



4. I've read several of Ms Burke's magazine articles and always found them greatly missing in details. I purchased this book thinking that here I'd find more detail and finishing techniques. Wrong. The projects highlighted in this book are also high level and give you just enough information to get yourself into trouble if you don't already have the experience to figure the rest out yourself.
   
   The 1st half of the book is in paint techniques. And although there are a good variety listed, little detail or examples are given. These would be good for only the true beginner who mostly wanted to look at the pictures and think about 'someday'. If you are looking for a book with both good pictures and written directions on paint techniques, I'd suggest Collage with Color by Jane Davies.
   
   If I hadn't spilled a little coffee on one of the pages, I'd return.



5. I found that the techniques shown in this book were at the beginner level. Although I will hang onto a book if it is the slightest bit inspirational, I could not find any in this book and decided to return it.

5 comments about Virtual Pose 3: The Ultimate Visual Reference Series for Drawing the Human Figure.

1. The 360 degree rotating is great, some poses could be more interesting, some are too similar to each other. The women modeling are pretty much the same, same bone structure, similar weight, skin color, ethnicity and age. There is only one young male model, and one older male model. That part was really disappointing. And what it bother me the most was the background color. in all the pictures is the same, white!. A darker color, gray or black on any other color for that matter would be great! the fact that all the models are REALLY white becomes obnoxious. At certain points the background blends with their sking color, making it hard to differentiate one from the other. With a different background the model would "pop-out", and the artist's eyes would easily focus on his/her subject.



2. i really love using this book (and the CD). i want to mention that i have a Mac with an operating system that isn't updated (OS 10.2), and i purposely got Virtual Pose 3 because i assumed (rightly) that a more recent version of these books would come with a CD-ROM that's not compatible with my operating system. so thankfully i CAN use this CD, which is the best part of this book.
   
   in my opinion, the book itself would be improved by 3 things:
   
   1. more dramatic lighting (although i believe the author has addressed his reasoning for this)
   
   2. a spiral binding (easier use for drawing from the book itself)
   
   3. larger pictures (at least some)
   
   i do like the models in this book very much, and the poses are great. i'm a bit of a beginner, and i only get to go to a life drawing once a month or so, so this is a great resource for me to just do lots and lots of gesture drawing, along with some more detailed work.



3. I am going to be critical, but I'd like to open with saying that this was a really cool and thoughful project for someone to come up with and offer to the artist.
   
   I get quite a chuckle at all the people who are angry about there being airbrushed vulvas and anuses. In your usual life drawing class you are not going to have the model eyeballing you with their privates. Its not like there is a shortage of vulvas and anuses online if that's what you want to draw. And any artist who has developed true capability with the human form can use the suggested form shadow as a base from which to draw a glorious sphincter and beautiful floral labia to make any viewer blush. Until then get over yourselves. The models, used to having a choice of what they want to show the students; are entitled to keep four square inches of themselves private from the world.
   
   Virtual Pose 3 is a good step up form Virtual Pose 2. And I appreciate the creativity of the poses and opportunity to see a pose from all sides. However I am still disappointed that these poses aren't lit properly to describe the form. Generally they are top lit so in standing poses you get some minor indication of core shadow and somewhat overly bright reflections on the skin on they upper torso,and everything below is pure ambient light and this obliterates form. While some poses are better with lighting than others; on the whole, the lighting is uninteresting and lifeless Virtual pose could take some cues on how to light their models by checking out an artistic soft porn site like Met Art. But hey, I suppose you are going to often be faced with the difficult challenge of illustrating people in ambient light. So Virtual Pose 3 will give you a real work out as you figure out how to describe form with even lighting all over!
   
   I'd like to see a Virtual Pose V or VI, but with artistic form light. As with Muybridge what a cool thing to attempt.But it won't be the ultimate reference series for the artist until the lighting loses its sterility.



4. I bought VP2 and VP3. At first, it was quite a novel idea, to plug in a disc and "rotate" the model 360" and draw from that. It was actually good practice for figure drawing. One gets a feel for the outlines and general
   proportions of the body, and with much practice, this book will help one
   improve one's drawing skills.
   However, there are some flaws. First, even though the photos are in full-color, the harsh lighting and poor resolution of many of the photographs make any serious, interior study of subtle shadows all but impossible. Look at a master figure drawing, and you'll see that the fine interpretation of shadows is paramount for a good figure study. Otherwise your figure will look "solarized" and crude. I found myself blocking in whole planes with singular, unnatural tone, trying to use my imagination to "figure out" what the tone should be. Worse, the arbitrary and non-dramatic lighting cast sharp secondary shadows on the figure which were quite displeasing. You could leave those out, but then you are left with a single-tone figure with no interior "body" shadows.
   Secondly, most of the poses are quite useless for artistic purposes. Unless you paint people doing yoga (see the cover), the poses will be only good for practice in studying the body, that's it. It's too bad, because it actually takes less effort to pose the model in natural sitting or standing poses you can actually use, than it does to pose them like a pretzel, but the author is obviously not a serious artist, and does not realize this. He is only concerned with giving a variety of dynamic-looking poses, most of which are actually quite useless for finished art.
   Thirdly, the Quicktime utility the disc comes with is sort of flaky. I wanted to "zoom in" certain areas (like I was able to do on VP 2, although the resolution is even worse in that edition), but VP 3 did not allow me
   to zoom in, even though the control was there. That was quite disappointing, because then I had to really lean forward and squint at the computer screen and draw--not very pleasant for a 1 hour figure study!
   
   In all, a decent idea and useful for the artist wishing to get the basics of figure drawing down. But for the serious artist, I suggest working from live models, or pose your friends and photograph them and then paint them, for a more serious, artistic figurative work. Posing the model so that you bring out the art of the interior, subtle shadows, and selecting a suggestive pose is paramount to becoming a good figurative artist. I have since sold both my VP2 and VP3 to a used bookstore, and have no regrets.



5. This is more than helpful for my art class. This is great!

5 comments about Bridgman's Complete Guide to Drawing From Life: Over 1,000 Illustrations.

1. WOW! Just got this book and had no idea it was soooo good! If you're into the constructional way of drawing the human figure, this book is for you!
   The mechanics of the body are so clearly shown and with many illustrations - all pages in this book are filled with useful information.
   
   So far I have been using those books by Gottfried Bammes, especially "Die Gestalt des Menchen" and I've considered that book to be the best of all my artistic anatomy books. This book by Bridgman comes very close to actually changing that and that's saying something!
   
   If this constructional way of drawing seems confusing I'd suggest you start with "Figure drawing for all it's worth" by Andrew Loomis. That would give you the general idea. (I do believe there is an online version of that book somewhere)
   You could also start with "The drawing manual" by Glenn Vilppu
   I promise you that to construct a figure is the proper way to draw - at least that's how artists have been trained since the renaissance. Even when drawing from life you should still construct.



2. This book goes good with Hogarth's Dynamic Anatomy. I have gained better understanding from studying this book as well as Hogarth's. I would recommend this book for anyone who wants to know a little about human anatomy.



3. This is a very helpful and thorough book. It's a great book to draw from, great for structural help. Great price on amazon! It's worth it because buying the individual books is much more expensive!



4. I also own Contructive Anatomy and his books on HANDS. This is a must have. Not just for the content, but also for the style. Any serious artist should diligenly copy the sketches in this book, as a daily sketch exercise.



5. Mainly for intermediate-level artists- I *might* have to pick this as my #1 Bridgman book. It has a little bit of *everything* depicting figure construction from memory. It's also great for general improvement; a few tips & tricks- an indispensable reference for all working artists.
   
   And Bridgman appeals to a *very* wide-ranging audience: fine & commercial artists; illustrators; comicbook pencilers; animators; video-game designers; fashion artists; sculptors; computer graphics designers; students; intermediate-artists; experts; and professionals. This Complete Guide represents the best of 6 out of his 7 individual books. Drawing the Female Form is the book that gets left out. Designed by editor Howard Simon in 1952; Bridgman passed away in 1943, so it's not Bridgman's fault if anyone has issues with the layout(!).
   Here's a quick breakdown of his 6 individual books, from my very favorite to least...
   1. Book of a Hundred Hands- His *best* representation of hands; if hands are your main interest, skip all else & buy 100 hands.
   2. Constructive Anatomy- His *best* individual work on figure construction- especially with cubed-construction of the head.
   3. Heads, Features and Faces- Great for beginners; it isn't in-depth, and it isn't nearly overwhelming like this Complete Guide.
   4. Human Machine- Genius in concept- drawings exceedingly sketchy. These are the sketchiest drawings in this Complete Guide.
   5. Bridgman's Life Drawing- Like a mini Complete Guide. Treats the figure in its parts as well as with basic, full-figure movement.
   6. Drawing the Draped Figure- *Very* basic. Everything you need from this exceedingly thin book is included in this Complete Guide.
   
   In short: The basic *point* of Bridgman's Complete Guide is to help people to draw figures more convincingly, and even from memory. To a great degree, at least in my opinion, this book still succeeds in a very effective way...
   
   P.S. This book is definitely *not* for beginners! Only *Intermediate-level* artists need apply.

5 comments about Modeling the Figure in Clay (Practical Craft Books).

1. This excellent book teaches you accurate anatomy at the same time as providing quality instruction on figure sculpting.



2. I am an artist who love to make detailed art work in my drawing and sculpture. I love art, but it cannot become my life career. While unable to attend any art class but despreately want to learn I look in to books for answers. And I found this book. I find my answers to the detail I'm looking for in this book. The book shows you how the artist create a female body sculpture starting from bone to muscle, and from muscle to skin. This book is a good resource to me. As my own Christmas presents I bought it.



3. This book is more helpful than Lucchesi's other guides. There is a lot of practicle info here which will help you get familiar with figure sculpting. I would say that this book as actually about as helpful as taking a beginning figure sculpture class, and the techniques are very solid. I am actually a pretty tough critic, and a 4 star review for an art instruction book coming from me is pretty rare (check out my other reviews for art books if you don't believe me).



4. So appreciate that Bruno took the time to produce this book so that those of us who arent able to attend his workshops, have the opportunity to learn.A master of anatonomy who presents the process in pictorial stages we can clearly follow.A must have figure form book.



5. both this and 'Modeling the Head in Clay' are the best books I've seen on the subject.
   
   Highly recommended

5 comments about Human Anatomy for Artists: The Elements of Form.

1. This book is invaluable for reference. At 1st I was 'so so' about the illustrations but as I started to require detailed information for the sculpture I was doing showing the muscles - i discovered the exact information I needed was contained in this book and the more anatomy I do the more it is this book i use.



2. 'Human Anatomy for Artists: The Elements of Form' by Goldfinger is just perfect, especially if you want to know where the muscles actually attach to bone, something many anatomy books for artists simply don't cover. The Goldfinger book, for each muscle or group of muscles, has one or more side-by-side series of illustration and photos that shows:
   
   - the naked bones in a given area with highlights that show you the surface areas where an individual muscle attaches, even if that muscle is an underlying muscle that normally is completely covered by surface muscles.
   
   - the muscle or muscles in question attached to their bones in isolation (no other muscles illustrated).
   
   - all the muscles in the given area to show the relation ship between them and the muscle that is the subject of the series, even if the muscle in question is virtually covered up.
   
   - a photo of a well-toned human model in the same pose as the illustration series with labels to the various muscles.
   
   - one or more cross-sections (up to five or more) of the area being illustrated with each muscle labeled to show clearly how the muscles over-lap and lay across each other and the underlying bone.
   
   - if necessary, the model will be shown in a pose that shows how an underlying, virtually hidden muscle is important to the artist when the subject is in a certain pose (e.g., an underlying muscle can lift and change the form of the surface muscles when it is in contraction and/or the body is in a certain pose).
   
   - a series of 'mass' diagrams that may be of use in building a 'shorthand' for the muscle or group in question.
   
   - It's not just a picture book. It has a lot of descriptive text for each of the series of illustrations, and covers aspects important to artists, such as the different types of muscle fibers, etc.
   
   
   I counted at least 17 of these series dealing just with attachments to the clavicle, but I might have missed some since the organization is by area (trunk, neck, upper arm, forearm, etc.) and there are a lot of attachments to the clavicle from more than one of these areas. Also, there may be more than one series dedicated to a given muscle or group of muscles so that it is shown from back, front, side, and/or above, sometimes. The illustrations are as good or better than the best I've ever seen in any other anatomy book, especially ones for artists, which can be sketchy to a degree.
   
   I really don't think you need a library of anatomy books if you get just this one.



3. This is just what I needed just gives me all the mechanical functions of the body. Only thing is the examples are of the male body only there isn't much on the female. Anatomy of male and female are the same in some ways and other they are not, not just the sex organs, but the skeleton and chemical balances that go on. Just thought there could have been more about the females as well.



4. Excellent book, quick delivery at a competitive price. Excellent value. I'll use the book for years to come.



5. I had this book recommended to me by a friend years ago when we were all trying to get into the comic book industry. I bought it and loved it. You can learn anything you want to know about how the musculature and skeleton are put together and how they work. Each different part of the anatomy is given almost too much attention. Each angle is given a photo of the body part, and drawings of the arm with muscles or just the skeleton.
   
   The biggest problem is there isn't too much tying the parts together. You may get a very good idea how the arm works, where the muscles put to and from, how the skeleton moves when you move your arm, but you won't get much information on how the arm connects and moves with the rest of the body. Your aren't a collection of individual parts (2 arms, 2 legs, etc) but one unified body and all your parts move together. You need a good concept of that before this book will be used to its utmost.

5 comments about The Arthur Rackham Treasury: 86 Full-Color Illustrations.

1. I heartily concur with all the other reviews as far as the necessity of exposing children to Rackham's illustrations as soon as possible. Hopefully this would happen in part through his books, like his Aesop's Fables, Favorite Tales From Grimm, Alice and Wonderland, etc. So my purpose is more practical: to say that the two Dover collections of his pictures, this and Rackham's Fairy Tale Illustrations are very true to Rackham's original color illustrations. I have seen reproductions of some of his illustrations that make his colors seem muddy. He uses a lot of dark colors in his work, but he also used many subtle light colors which have been captured well here. A great value for the money, along with the Fairy Tale book. All the pictures are suitable for framing.



2. As advertised. This is a Dover book, so it includes no scholarly apparatus to speak of. Still, the printing is good, and it includes a nice collection of prints that I hadn't seen. Shipping was timely.



3. As a child I was thrilled with Arthur Rackham's illustrations and I haven't lost my love for his work. They're timeless. He combines the real world with magical kingdoms, the almost-grotesque creatures with the unusually beautiful, the fairy creatures with the mortals, humor with terror. Rackham paints beautiful landscapes and beautiful people, yet we know to beware of the creatures who may lurk under the gnarly tree roots. His colors are subdued, but rich; and his detail is gracefully executed.
   
   His illustrations have been and still are an inspiration to artists who wish to delve into an imaginative realm. And for those who wish to delve in themselves, I highly recommend this excellent book. Thanks to Arthur Rackham, the fairy world is alive and well, and shall remain so.
   
   Denise Hillman Moynahan
   The Great Cavern of the Winds: Tales from Backbone Mountain



4. I was introduced to Arthur Rackham's magical illustrations as a child via the old St. Nicholas children's magazines, and his pictures have lost none of their magic in the ensuing years. Rackham's pen-and-ink drawings are complemented by a muted palette of colors that transform the glossy pages into insubstantial doors that open into an enchanted world populated by slender butterfly-winged fairies, multitudes of elves and gnomes, and twisted anthropomorphic trees that capture a child's imagination, without being threatening. At the same time, the sharp angular faces of the children in his drawings suggest a subtle mischievous humor that prevents Rackham's illustrations from ever sinking into sentimentality.
   
   Rackham's pen covered a wide range of subjects, from Shakespeare's "Midsummer Night's Dream" and "The Tempest" by way of Kenneth Grahame's "Wind in the Willows", Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland," and classical fairy tales, to Wagner's "Ring of the Niebelungen."
   
   We are so lucky to have these beautifully reproduced Dover illustrations in a single book. They should be introduced to one's grandchildren so that their own imaginations may also take flight with the enchanting creatures of Arthur Rackham's world.



5. I love this book! I found that the introduction was helpful in placing each piece of art in context. The works themselves are gorgeous and enchanting. The book really shows the breadth of talent and subject matter Rackham mastered, as well as his superb use of composition and imagination. An excellent book for any collection, for children and adults alike.

No comments about Launching the Imagination 2D split.

2 comments about Best of Business Card Design 8 (Best of Business Card Design).

1. The book is a great resource! As a graphic artist, I've panned through the pages for ideas. It's even better when my daughter has her business card design published in this issue! It's no wonder I purchased 5 of them!



2. This is a wonderful, hardback book with hundreds of inspirational designs. Unique, attractive business cards presented in an artful layout with plenty of white space. An excellent reference and idea source.

No comments about Fully Booked: Cover Art and Design for Books.

5 comments about Elements of Writing Fiction - Scene & Structure (Elements of Fiction Writing).

1. This book is an absolute must.
   
   The first book that you should read is Swain's Techniques of the Selling Writer.
   
   The second book is this one.
   
   Both of these books demonstrate fundamental dramatic technique: scene and sequel. Scene is comprised of goal, conflict, disaster and in which the conflict is worked out via stimulus-internal reaction-response. After a scene comes the sequel in which the character emotionally and rationally selects a new goal.
   
   Other reviewers notwithstanding, this is not a write by the numbers book. You are free to vary the pattern as much as you please -- after all, it's your book, and your vision. But for anyone who has written numerous chapters and realizes that something is wrong, this book will give much needed understanding.



2. Bickham was Dwight Swain's student at Oklahoma and went on to write a lot of (I think) pot boilers using what he learned, then wrote Scene & Structure. If you're a working writer (or want to be), the book to read, study and memorize is Dwight Swains "Techniques of the Selling Writer." It's got everything you need to kick start your education in writing fiction. I've published one short story, won several literary prizes for both fiction and non-fiction, and I'm deep into writing my first novel. Swain is the only one I've ever read who really knows how fiction works and can explain it so others can do it, too. Bickham's book is 168 pages, including index. By page 168, Swain is telling the student how the "end of the beginning" needs to be structured to generate suspense. Which one sounds more valuable to you?



3. I just finished reading this book. I read the whole book carefully, then went back and re-read several chapters. I believe I understand what Mr. Bickham is trying to get across.
   
   I agree with the reviewers who accuse the author of presenting a formulaic, by-the-numbers prescription for writing, because that's exactly what he does. The idea that every scene must begin with a clear statement of goal and must end in a disaster is simply ludicrous. Even if by "disaster" Bickham means "setback," his poor choice of word is symptomatic of his own prose style, which is simply dreadful. I thought Dan Brown was a poor wordsmith, but Bickham makes him seem like Shakespeare! Unfortunately 90% of his examples come from his own wretched novels, which makes for some very unpalatable reading.
   
   Still, the idea of scene plus sequel as a basic pattern in a genre novel is probably on the mark. Clearly many variants and deviations from this pattern are possible, and Bickham admits this, even offers some examples. But I think his book might be more useful as a tool for analyzing genre novels than as a blueprint for writing them. The author who follows Bickham's prescriptive formulae is bound to produce a stilted piece of work that very few would want to read. On the other hand, using Bickham's ideas for fine-tuning a scene or sequel might bear fruit. But beware pronouncements such as avoiding narrative summary or extended internalization within a scene.
   
   I am much more in tune with Stephen King's method of writing, in which the plot or structure of the novel evolves organically as it's written. Those who feel otherwise and are looking for a method of plotting a novel may turn to a book like this. But I would caution against plotting out every scene and sequel in advance, as Bickham advocates. If you know in advance every twist and turn the story is going to take, then where's the fun in writing it?



4. I have used this book to teach plotting to creative writing students, so my review is based on how well absolute novice writers respond to the ideas he puts forth in this book. On the whole, they respond positively. Once they grasp the standard three-act structure of a plot, they find his scene-sequel formula to be IMMENSELY helpful figuring out how to work out options for rising action. A few students complain that they don't like being taught a *formula*, and it seems a few reviewers have that gripe as well.
   
   I'll say here what I say in class. First, if a formula happens to have been successful (as you can see if you break down almost any movie or popular novel), eh, maybe just this once it might be worth your time to learn it. Just file it away somewhere or something. Second, just because Bickham advocates a linear tic-tock scene-sequel way of composing your plot, that does not mean, nor does Bickham anywhere say, that you have to TELL the story in simple lockstep straightforward chronology. Once you have the basic idea of what's going to happen and why, you can start the story whenever you darn well please. You can start just at the climax, if you want, and tell the story through disconnected flashbacks, so that readers have to piece together the shards into the picture of the story arc. You can tell the story as an epistolary novel. You can tell it by varied protagonists. The only limit is imagination of the author. If you hate this book because you can't figure out new and creative ways to apply his basic formula, that doesn't necessarily equate with the *book* being worthless.
   
   My students are grateful because (and remember they're all fledgling writers) this book's ideas give them handles to grasp when they sit down to write. I don't advocate the whole 'scene goal clearly stated to the reader' thing Bickham states, but if you as the WRITER have no idea what the scene goal is, or how things are going to wind up worse for the protagonist, chances are pretty high there will be a high Flounder Quotient in your plotting. All in all, it's worth your time and money as long as you are willing to view it as a plotting aid device and not the Magic Potion of Writing. It's a skeleton upon which one can reliably hang decent stories: my students are invariably impressed at the end of the semester both at their own ingenuity in storytelling and how they managed to create a story that *moves* and unfolds logically.



5. I have this book as well as Dwight Swains Techniques of the Selling Writer, I am working through them both as I learn fiction writing, hopefully for a profit. Yes, I hope to make money off of writing; it seems there are a few reviews here making profit sound like an evil thing and this book, the spawn of that evil.
   
   If I needed to write "important" books, or to help the world with my writing, I wouldn't want this book, I'd want an MFA. This is about fun, writing fun and reading fun, at least to me anyway. I want books I wright to be fun, fun to write and fun to read. I'll take "Pot Boiling" as some other reviews have stated this is, I'm quite content to leave windmill tilting to more suitably equipped, perhaps better educated individuals. I want to learn to spin yarns, sturdy yarns that sell, this book seems a good place for me to start. For me, someone looking to tell a better story, Bickham and Swain are helping out a lot.