Painting-the

Home Improvement books tend to be either too verbose or deal with multiple subjects that are just too vague and off the subject. This is one of the exceptions. All common interior painting techniques are discussed, along with great pictures. The book doesn't stray from the subject at hand by showing you the author's home remodeling project.

In addition, there is a discussion of color and what it does to a space with a great sequence of photographs of the same room in different shades.

Having purchased many books on home improvement, this one gets top honors.

The book really goes into details on how to get quality of a painting surface. It tells how to prepare the surface, different types of walls, different types of paints, tips from professional painters and even some decorative painting techniques.

If a person has never done any painting on his/her own, this is the book you definitely need. Even if you've painted before and you are not satisfied or you did a sloppy job, this book will tell you about your mistakes.

This book will really teach you how to get best quality of a paint job that you can match it up with a paint job done by a professional painter. I will highly recommend this book if you are thinking of starting a painting business or even doing a home project on your own. But for a business along with this book you'll need "Painting Contractor's Handbook".

I always want to do my house painting. This book provide the best information I need to start with and not paying much for it.

Simply better than the first... and it's on my bookshelf now.

I got this book from a local bookstore. Only one was available and the cover was not in a very good condition. But I find the content stunning... the combination of photographs and no faults with the manipulations/modifications done could have easily fooled many in earlier days. Today we know such mastery is possible powerful computer software.

This book eye candy to me.

Sometimes we come across advertisements (eg. posters) that catch our attention and make us wonder---"How REAL!!" and amaze us. This book is filled with wonderful pictures, carefully designed, composited, etc. with consideration of details such as shadows to make things realistic. Everything in the pictures blends well with other elements in the pictures. With the power of today's photo editing software, some of these may not be difficult to produce but for the rest, they seem like wonders to me. Imagination and skills are essential.

If you are in advertising and designing, it would be a great challenge to yourself to try to produce similar effects in the book. Or if you are just looking for a book that shows you great pictures in advertising, you will find this book to be an eye-candy. However, this book does not teach you how to produce the effects; which, I think is not the aim of the book.

I am happy to have a copy of this book.

I discovered Charles Reid at my local library and was smitten with his loose, colorful, gorgeous pictures. This book is a clear, helpful guide to making juicy watercolors of still lifes that sing with color. He has practical tips on brushwork, contour drawing and composition that are easy to follow and clearly explained. He also has step-by-step instructions for several of his pictures that show you how he goes about making his own pictures (often from everyday objects and flowers on his kitchen counter). I'm fairly new to watercolors and I found this book invaluable to improving my pictures and getting me to loosen up and feel creative and find beauty in simple objects.

I wish I had had this book years ago. It contains exercises to enable the reader/student to experience and learn direct painting techniques that bring freshness, spontaneity, bright vivid color and realism to one's paintings--inspite of an "untidy" style. If you're serious about watercolor, Reid can take you where you really should go. Reid embodies the principles of the best of watercolor and painting teaching of the past (particularly Hawthorne, Henri, Manet). He puts it all together into what I call a meditative painting style (stroke on color and pause to consider, then soften, add other color wet-in-wet, and so on. Doing the exercises in this book can revolutionize your painting and will, at the very least, bring immediate and important improvements to your technique and approach to watercolor. If you like Reid's paintings--flower, figures, portraits, etc., do yourself a favor--get the book and the two corresponding videos.

I have just purchased this book, as well as 2 instructional videos by Charles Reid. I would highly recommend the set to anyone who needs to "loosen up" his or her painting style. He shows you how to get the color right with a minimal amount of strokes, and how to keep from overworking a painting. He is an excellent instructor and author. You won't be disappointed!

As "aum" captures the sound of the universe, as Georgia O'Keefe captures the vibration of a flower, Susan Hall's landscape paintings capture the very "prana" of the land in West Marin County in Northern California. The paintings of rolling green and golden hills, a watery marsh, a farmhouse nestled in the fold of a hill transport the viewer to what is transcendent in the landscape. Susan expresses a deeper essence of the land and water than could ever be subject to words. Her renditions of light, reflection, atmosphere and water are positively multisensory - I feel the density of the air, the moisture that lingers above the pond, I smell the dry sharpness of the grasses. Best of all, she leaves space for the viewer's feelings and projections while nonetheless managing to quietly and subtly uplift and inspire. Look for the joy in the brushstroke, the subtle whimsy in the color, the power in her earth.

The introductory sections are worth reading, locating Hall's body of work in the history of landscape painting (which I suspect will be significant!), in the local geography and geology, in her own personal history/memories there, and.as a commentary on human use of the land and water in the Point Reyes area. From these, the reader gets the sense of the largesse and intelligence and relevance of Hall's landscapes, yet it should be noted that the majority of paintings, modestly titled "Rocks and Sea," "The Beach," "Full Moon," are already in people's collections. A great American painter who obviously speaks to the souls of her audience.

I return to this compilation over and over, to rest, recalibrate and inspire my psyche. In addition to people who appreciate fine art, it is also appropriate for people in psychology, deep ecology, nature enthusiasts, those who live and work in the outdoors, and those in the meditative arts. I gave it to a writer to evoke his cherished spaces in Northern California.

Susan Hall's paintings of Point Reyes, part of the Point Reyes National Seashore, are sublime meditations on a very special landscape. And although the book is a tribute to this idyllic area, her paintings go beyond any physical setting. As I looked through the book I realized that I was turning the pages more slowly at each color plate. The simplicity of the format, the beauty and richness of the colors (which is too often the disappointment in reproductions) and the images themselves captured me and I was reluctant to go quickly. This is a successful representation of both the spirit and the amazing skill of Ms. Hall's work. I highly recommend it.

Susan Hall's Painting Point Reyes offers a lyrical gallery of rural landscapes wrought with the refined sensibility of an artist who cherishes her birthplace. Ms. Hall's selection of the spacious natural environment for her subject matter - California's stunning Point Reyes National Seashore - is as important as what she leaves out: all the peripheral contemporary distractions of billboards, crowds and cars. By haunting us with the universal through richly layered minimalist compositions often depicted under the diffuse light of night, she offers a spare and precious moment of touching the lagoons and pools, the hillsides and meadows she calls home.

When a man presents himself at the home of William Trenchard and his wife Catherine, claiming to be Sir James Davenall, the long-thought dead fiancee of Catherine, it proved to be the first link in a long and convoluted chain of events. James had supposedly drowned himself upon discovering that he had inherited syphillis from his father. After the disappearance, his father refused to believe him dead and, even after the obligatory 7 years absence, would not have him declared legally dead. After the father dies, James's younger brother Hugo becomes baronet in his place and is therefore horrified to learn of the challenge to his new found wealth and position. Richard Davenall, sousin to James and Hugo and also the family solicitor, is put in the invidious position of having to deny the claims of the recently reappearing James or of helping him to prove his rightful place in the family. I found this to be a terrific read, full of twists, turns and with red herrings galore!

I discovered Robert Goddard by accident when I took a random choice book (Caught in the Light by Robert Goddard)off the shelf in my local library about three months ago. Since then, I have devoured everything I can find that he has written. He takes a fairly simple story and weaves events and characters into his tale which keep the reader fascinated until the very last page.It turns out that one has read, in fact, a wonderful mystery story in the true sense of the word. Why is there not more publicity about the author? Do his books have large sales? A new reader only has to read his/her first Goddard novel and they are hooked forever. A modern Trollope whom the world should know more about.

I couldn't put this book down, dying to know the truth about whether this man was the one who supposedly killed himself years earlier or an imposter. What really made this book was that the chapters alternated between a first person point-of-view and a third person point-of-view. I previously thought it was impossible to pull off shifting point-of-views in a novel but this one proved to be the total exception. It was an experiment that was an unqualified success. All writers should also read this book to explore the outter reaches of creative possibilites open to them.

Indeed, this is the ONLY book I decided to have a copy of my own on painting watercolor portraits. I purchased this book several years ago, read it, applied it, and found it a real gem. Although my current interest is mostly painting in oil, I still remember vividly my pleasant experiences using the book:

- The author thoroughly presents the topics in the book, from improving your drawing skills, lighting models, to using colors, etc...

- His style is what that is referred as "painterly". The finished paintings are enlightening, artistic, and simply beautiful. I love and treasure the works created by this author, as well as those representing great craftmanship and expressions.

Buy this book if you still can find a copy of it. To fully benefit it, may I suggest:

- First and foremost, focus on your drawing skills. With a tranparent medium like watercolor, drawing skills are more than ever the most crucial requirement for a great final painting.

- Practice, practice, and practice, using advices from the book.

Thank you, Mr. Stine, for a great book!

I don't really use the how-to portions of books like these although I'm sure many artists do. What I like doing instead is looking at the pictures and see what they in and of themselves can teach me. What struck me about this book when I bought it was that if one wanted to make one's portraits a lot freer, more fluid, flowing and looser, this book shows that very well. I would especially encourage any of us working in colored pencils or pastels to consider incorporating watercolor in a mixed media approach towards portraiture. Stine definitely shows more Impressionistic results in portraiture than realistic. However, these are hardly Abstract Expressionist portraits! You can't mix this with oil, of course, so if you are looking at this work compared to your own in oil, you would be contemplating doing a complete 180 degree switch. It certainly would save you an enormous amount of drying time to make the switch from oil to watercolor. The brush work seems as if it would be a lot faster as well. Every page in this book seems to have a full color watercolor portrait featured on it so it is a good value for the money as well.

This book is focusing on contour drawing and the use of water colors for portrait painting. As a matter of fact water colors are mostly used for natur painting and this may be the reason for the very few portrait books avaialble.

The author gives av very good instruction in what colors to use to develope various skin tones and how to paint shapes due to shadows and edges in the motive. This book has in many ways completed my large collection of book about water color painting.

This is a great book with simple steps to follow. I'm an oil painter "trying" out acrylic painting. This was my very first acrylic book. I was not disappointed (except I paid (more) at the bookstore for mine)... This is a good book for any beginner to begin with.

Yarnell makes it easy. He covers everything including materials and terminology. The step by step leasons are easy to follow and provide a wealth of information from which you can build your own skills and learn the basics to experiment on your own. I would also suggest Yarnell's videos, one in particular covering techniques so that you can actually see what is going on.

I have always had some artistic skill but I never painted a picture before picking up this book. I am amazed at the results. For the first two projects I bought cheaper canvas board instead of pre-stretched canvas because I assumed the first few paintings would be hit-or-miss at best. But the very first lesson I did from the book got scooped up by a brother-in-law and is framed and hanging on his wall! I've got more requests than I can fill now and some are hanging in a local restaurant (for sale!) A big thanks to Jerry and a hearty recommendation to anyone who wants to try painting in acrylics. He will walk you through everything from tools to paint to finishing touches. One dissapointment was no seascapes! I've had two requests for them. I recommend this book over Bob Ross'. There are no knives or tricks used here and the effects are more artistic.

I have introduced a number of children's art story books to my 3 year old daugher and 4 1/2 year old son. This book is a particular favorite of my son. I think he finds intriguing the notion of a very shy girl getting attention by a famous person, growing in confidence in her own abilities, and then realizing a dream of her own. He is very attentive to the details in the book and points out that Picasso wears house slippers and keeps all sorts of odd things in his studio. My son particularly likes the idea of Picasso grubbing around in a rubbish bin to create art, which Anholt illustrates with various Picasso sculptures including one of a bull's head, a metal bike seat and handlebars for horns. The evolution of Picasso's work is beautifully told from a classical (realistic) pencil sketch of the girl with a ponytail (Sylvette) in profile to Picasso's final sculpture of Sylvette in found metal objects. A tenderly told tale of a girl's coming of age and an aging artist's genius mixed with kindness.

This is a wonderful book that we've read to our children for years. The fact that there is a true story behind the book makes it even more interesting for the adults who have been doing the reading. This book has particularly captivated our older boy. As we read and re-read the book to him, it was fascinating to watch as his attention shifted from simply listening to the story to observing how Picasso changed his representation of Sylvette over time -- and his questions about the art captured that change in perception. Together with the Classical Kids CDs, this series by Anholt has been one of the more valuable ways that we have introduced classical Western culture to our children.

I read Picasso and the Girl with a Ponytail. I liked how the author put real pictures of Picasso's art work in the book. At the end of the book, I liked how the author put some more real information about Picasso and Sylvette and put a picture of Picasso painting Sylvette.

This book reveals that in addition to being one of the century's greatest visual artists, he was also a tallented and entertaining writer. Dali's personality is all here-- the brilliance, the cruelty, the humor, and the megalomania.

If you compare this with other sources you'll find that the chronology for his youth is off, and (not surprisingly) some incidents are creatively embellished. Still, anyone interested in the artist should read this book first-- it's a great self portrait by a brilliant eccentric artist.

This book, without a doubt, is the most hysterically funny thing I have ever read. Dali is some kind of weird comic genius, and I am not exaggerating when I say that I laughed out loud on every page. Whatever you think of Dali's art--and I've never thought much of it myself--this book is a guaranteed laugh riot.

Salvador Dali is a genius, and even though I really do think that it is redundant to say genius and Salvador Dali in the same sentence, it serves it's purpose. This book, so intimitely perverse yet, cunningly understandable sets an example for man kind at it's best. Who has ever dreamed of conducting their own experiments based off of their wildest dreams? Or plunged off of a stair case to give the example of anti-limitation? How about searching their entire life for their one true love, ignoring all possibilities of just a fling or a relationship without meaning. Everything has meaning to Dali, and he brings that meaning to real life. I know that I have always wanted to explore my wildest dreams in actuality, and this book gives me the power to overcome what other people think. Salvador realises that what others think is important, but he knows that their thoughts and actions, when based upon his own unpredictablity makes a hell of a show for the audience within. Through this book you will learn to think outside the box and everything for one instant will make sense in your mind. Or you could read it without knowing what you are getting into exactly and become the most disgusted person on Earth. That doesn't matter though... all that you have to do is comprehend, and he will help you with that.

This Instructional Project Book offers wonderful projects by today's renowned top artists in stamping, clay, collage, etc. However typographical errors distract from the step-by-step instructions.
Xyron is one of the most "top of mind" brands in the Arts and Crafts industry, but was referred to as Zyron several times throughout the book. I noticed misspelled words such as Dall instead of Doll and poor sentence structure.
I do not blame the author, but the Publishing House for proofreading errors. This shows lack of knowledge and details for the art form in which they are representing.
When I buy a book of this price point and with step-by-step instructions I expect top-notch editing!!!!

This book is delightfully full of creative uses of rubber stamps by talented artisans in many mediums. The author has explained every project in easy-to-understand terms. Projects are separated into sections, such as "for the home," which makes it easy to select a project, and each section has a well-written introduction by the author. I didn't find one project I didn't like or wouldn't want to reproduce. The photography is wonderful! Any little petty glitches, which you'll find in any book, are easily overlooked because of the innovative subject matter and the masterful photos. (Even the revered "Chicago Manual of Style" has typos!) If you want something a little different, this is the book I recommend. It's worth every penny I spent on it, and I look forward to more great books by the author!

With projects for the beginner to the master, this inspiring book invites every reader to jump right in! The featured artists present new and interesting projects that are wearable (remember those great "travelling shoes" in Somerset Studio by Linda Woods?!), display-able, memorable--something for you, your home, your heart, your closet. There is something fun or challenging for everyone, and the directions and pictures are great. Be warned: work will have to wait once you get this book! Rice Freeman-Zachary's fun, encouraging style will grab you!