Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #118563 in Books
• Published on: 1987-12-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

Customer Reviews

Harold Speed- An Excellent Teacher for the Serious Student
This book is very useful if you are interested in an academic/classical style of painting and take the precedent set by 17th century masters as your starting point. It is written by a painter,draughtsman and teacher of immense ability who made a living as an artist 100 years ago- The illustrations whilst not vibrant in print quality are very informative. A note of caution, It is not a book for amateurs who are not willing to wrestle with the serious issues of painting and the language he uses at times is outdated and therefore hard going. I also highly reccomend his companion book on drawing.

Very good.
This book is old fashioned, verbose, sometimes pompous, and filled with only a few plates, many of which are not the best reproductions. It is however, excellent. Like his book on drawing it is not for beginners, and apropos the reviewer below, it is not for the talentless or the dilettante. However, if you are at a level where you are bored by the poor quality of the instruction in most contemporary art books and are interested in traditional techniques, then this book is very useful. As with all books on art instruction, simply reading it and not practicing it will not make you a better painter.

This is a book that should become your Bible of painting.
This book you shall refer to over and over again learning newer and newer concepts and ideals you would have thought you had already learned. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED FOR THE SERIOUS AND TRUE STUDENT OF PAINTING.