5 comments about The Complete Book of Decorative Painting.

1. The Author, Tera Leigh, does a fantastic job "breaking down" decorative painting. The pictures and descriptions are fantastic. If you are contemplating starting decorative painting or just need a great reference, this is for you. Everything is broken down step by step and the diagrams, demos, and descriptions cannot be beat!



2. Tera Leigh's Complete Book Of Decorative Painting (1581800622 ...) tells how to use color basics, brushes, and techniques to create professional quality results in crafts, home decoration, and projects. From lettering and faux finishes to brush techniques and antiquing options, this uses a reference and question/answer format along with color photos to encourage easy experimentation.



3. Ms. Leigh's book, unlike so many others entitled 'complete,' is the genuine article, and comprehensively surveys the many styles and techniques used in creating decorative paint effects for craft. Whether you are a complete beginner (like myself) or an experienced artist, this is the only resource book on the subject you will need. Beautifully illustrated and written in Ms. Leigh's informed and engaging style, The Complete Book of Decorative Painting is as enjoyable a read as it is a valuable guide to painting. Each technique is illustrated with step-by-step instructions (including technique tips such as how to hold the brush and recommended types of paint that many other publications overlook), an honest evaluation and rating of the skill required for each (so the novice painter can select projects more likely to produce satisfactory results), and interesting details on the origins and historical development of individual styles. If you get the chance to see Ms. Leigh in person, as I recently did, do so. She is as engaging in person as she is in print. Long a Martha Stewart wannabe, I was genuinely surprised as how simple some of these techniques actually are, and found Ms. Leigh's instructions clear, comprehensive and easy to follow. I recommend this book without reservation to anyone interested in decorative painting.



4. This book is the finest book of its kind I have ever reviewed. It is a step-by-step guide to decorative painting that is easy to read and follow. This book is a must for your reference library of decorative painting materials. With this book you have a master teacher at your fingertips. The photography and detail is outstanding and shows the care and thoughtfulness that went into the completion of this work of art. The color-coded pages make it easy to find and follow illustrations you require; and I agree with the comments on the back of the book by Priscilla Hauser and Donna Dewberry.



5. This book is truly deserving of the word "complete" in its title. Novice and experienced decorative artists alike will benefit from the wealth of information presented. I'm sure it will become one of the most-often used books on my shelf.

3 comments about The Oil Painter's Bible: A Essential Reference for the Practicing Artist.

1. this book is no better than any other beginners guide - it is not the 'bible' for practicing artists that it professes to be



2. I recently spent a week at a folk art school in NC taking a week of oil painting classes for beginners. Returning home I went to my local library looking for something that I could relate to as well as my instructor and found The Oil Painter's Bible. It has so much information for the beginner that I ordered the book and refer to it every time I practice my painting. It is easy to follow and gives explanations that the novice can understand. Once I used it I knew that I had to have it for my permanent collection of books. Great book. Highly recommend it.



3. I just recently purchased the 'Oil Painter's Bible'. I have recently started an 'Introduction to Oil Painting' class. This is something I've always wanted to do - not knowing if I had any talent. I have surprised myself. This book was suggested to me by an artist friend and has proved to be a wonderful reference and guide to the wonders one can put on canvas. I highly recommend this book.

1 comments about Harry Callahan: Nature.

1. Harry Callahan was the most influential and important figure in photography throughout the last half of the 20th century. This edition of his work shows chronologically how Callahan's approach to the medium evolved and changed, while his vision remained ever faithful to modernity. The book begins in Detroit, where Callahan worked for Chrysler while pursuing photography as a serious hobby. It was also during this time that he married Eleanor Knapp, who would later become the subject for many of his strongest images. The accompanying essay by Sarah Greenough is succinctly written, blending biographical information to the photographs Callahan took throughout his long, photographic journey (Callahan died in 1999). Callahan's outlook on photography changed dramatically after having met Ansel Adams, at a photography workshop in Detroit. Taking some of Adams' philosophy and refining it, Callahan created his own style of photographing/printing, made apparent by such images as `Weeds in Snow' and `Detroit, 1942'. In these images and throughout the rest of his life, Callahan easily turned the simplest subject matter into monumental works of photographic art. The book provides powerful examples of this, in both black & white and color. After leaving his job to pursue photography full time, Callahan moved to Chicago and taught at the Institute of Design. Continuing the experimentation he began in Detroit, Callahan worked and refined his style during his Chicago years, utilizing double exposure, collage, close-ups, and the use of positive and negative space. The book then turns to Callahan's New England period. It was during this time that Callahan taught at the Rhode Island School of Design, in Providence. The book captures this period vividly, with images of varying contrast and mood. Here we see Callahan's ability at adapting to his environment by producing increasingly poetic images of nature, as well as urban and suburban street scenes. In his later work from 1972-1992, the photographs in "Harry Callahan" document the photographer's travels in other countries, with an increased attention on color. It remains clear by the images shown in his later years, that Callahan continued to explore photography by constantly challenging himself and the medium. Where most photographers are known for one particular style or body of work (Cartier-Bresson's `decisive moment' or Robert Frank's publication of The Americans), Callahan is known for many different styles and bodies of work. The photographs in "Harry Callahan" prove this with each turn of the page. Callahan was a photographic artist in the truest sense, if we choose to believe an artists' goal is not only to create but to constantly evolve. Callahan was, continues to be, and always will be an influence to those photographers who seek not only perfection in the creation of their photographic art, but also change.

1 comments about Watercolor Workshop II (Simple Steps to Success).

1. I am writing a "review" for this book, based on how much I enjoyed Watercolor Workshop I and how much I have looked forward to this one, (Watercolor Workshop II). Read my review for Watercolor Workshop I. It had some great paintings to do, and step-by-step directions. I think the book is well designed and there are many exciting styles and subjects to choose from, each one teaching you something new and helping develop skills. I am a beginner watercolorist, and have many watercolor books. I think this one stands out, and the price is certainly GREAT!!The Watercolorist's Essential Notebook: Landscapes

3 comments about Rembrandt: The Christmas Story.

1. This beautiful, 72 page book is a great gift for art lovers and Christians. Its introduction explains Rembrandt's possible inspiration and some details for each work. The text of the KJV Bible gives the book a devotional quality. Both text and art make for good meditation during a busy Christmas season. My favorite is the drawing on the book's cover, shown in full on page 27. It's a tender portrait of Mary and Jesus, possibly modeled by Rembrandt's wife and first child. I think knowing that the child died after two months makes this drawing all the more poignant to me. Jesus, God Almighty incarnate as a human, was just as frail as Rembrandt's first born.



2. This volume is a wonderful marriage of art by Rembrant and text from the Gospel infancy narratives. Thus the book revolves around well known episodes: the annunciation, Mary's visit to Elizabeth, the birth of John the Baptist, the birth of Jesus, the angel appearing to the shepherds ... etc. Some of the texts have multiple paintings and etchings associated with them; this has the effect of allowing the art more than the word to tell the story. This is an excellent book for anyone interested in religious or biblical art.



3. The pictures of this book are very good and the text fits well, however, having copies of the other two books in this series, "The Life Of Christ" and "The Old Testament", I was a bit dissapointed with the size of this book. The publishers seem to be attempting one of those "gift" books and in doing this they do a great disservice to the artist.

No comments about The Nature Diary of an Artist.

4 comments about Clyfford Still.

1. An excellent catalogue written by leading authorities on a great artist whose unique body of works has remained hidden in the estate (only about 150 paintings are scattered in public and private collections), and who, as a consequence has been neglected by the general public. It is the only such publication on Clyfford Still to be published since the late 1980's and I strongly recommend it to any art lover interested in the Ab-Ex movement.



2. A few of my favorite painters are contemporaries of Still, so I saw it as my duty to see the Hirschhorn exhibition. Well, I picked a dead day and had the show to myself and simply put I am now a fan. The book is great and David Anfam's addition to the book is especially enlightening about the work of Still.



3. I am a painter who has largely avoided Clifford Still but this book has turned me into a great admirer. Particulary influential was the contribution by David Anfam, the art historian who was responsible for the magnificent, award-winning Mark Rothko catalogue raisonne. Anfam's essay is insightful, far-reaching, beautifully written with poetic underpinnings, a pleasure to read. All you'll ever need to know about Clifford Still, his work, and his place in art history is covered in this essay. The color plates are also wonderful and, even as reproductions, offer a great chance to appreciate the paintings.



4. Clyfford Still is one of the giant figures of the art world and this book puts his paintings in a proper perspective. The book contains many color reproductions of his large non-objective canvases. Still himself wrote the book and gives us a very good insight into his life and thinking process. He discusses what went into his paintings and how his unique canvas numbering system worked absent dates and titles to identify his work. It is also a journey through his body of work. His paintings were skillfully balanced with positive and negative spaces and his unparalleled use of color is well documented. This book is a must for any art lover in general and for students of American art in particular. I liked this book not only for the well reproduced paintings in color but also because it let's us into the painter's mind to get a glimps of his true genius.

3 comments about More Wildlife Painting: Techniques of Modern Masters.

1. A stunning collection of masterworks from wildlife artists with detailed and helpful insights into their techniques. Not to be missed!



2. this book only brievly describe the techniques used and sometimes what medium was used is not even mentioned. This is a nice book for the artwork, but as a teatching tool, it is not the book to buy. There are a few useful tips and a rough explanation with visual on how a mountain lion with cubs painting was done, but all we see from that is the 3 main step of that painting. Most exemple don't even go there and only have a bit of text explanation.



3. Beautiful art work , alot of helpful tips on how to get the right look with hair/fur . A great gift even for children to peak their interest in art .

No comments about Woodblock Kuchi-E Prints: Reflections of Meiji Culture.

3 comments about The Encyclopedia of Oil Painting Techniques: A Unique Step-by-Step Visual Directory of All the Key Oil-Painting Techniques, Plus an Inspirational Gallery Showing How They Can Be Put into Practice.

1. This book was everything I'd hoped it would be, and more.
   
   I did do the whole art school thing (twice) but the thing that is so good about this book is that it would be suitable for beginners as well as more experienced artists. The examples given are very clear, but there is no 'here is how you should draw a tree in three easy steps' stuff (shudder!).
   
   I'd highly recommend this book. My only real criticism is that it could be longer, I can easily think of 10 or 20 extra sections that could be added. I will keep referring back to this book again and again I'm sure.



2. A very good starter book on oil painting and techniques. I believe I have used some of the tips and strategies successfully. If your interested in painting, have this next to your canvas



3. This book is a very complete introduction to painting and the many various ways paint can be applied to a surface. The thing I liked best about this book is that it uses more then one artist to illustrate the different painting applications. I have had this book for years and it is my favorite reference book.