Product Description

Re-styled and revised for the 21st-century artist, this handbook is full of information on traditional art methods of drawing, painting and print-making, together with significant modern art techniques, such as digital photography, digital printing and digital image manipulation. The text encompasses all the tools, materials and skills of the artist's craft and should prove a useful guide for aspiring artists across a wide range of taste and experience.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #499052 in Books
• Published on: 2003-05-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 384 pages

About the Author
Ray Smith is a writer, illustrator and lecturer at many art schools, including Chelsea School of Art and University of Plymouth. In 1990 he was appointed by HM Government to serve as a member of the Art Working Group for the National Curriculum. He has won a number of art awards, including a Royal Society of Arts Art for Architecture Award. Ray lives in Somerset.

Customer Reviews

invaluable
This book is invaluable, especially to someone like myself who didn't have the opportunity to study art foundation. Below the title the text reads equipment, materials, procedures and techniques. This is exactly what this handbook provides in terms of information. Having seen the work of some commercial illustrators I wanted to understand how they came about creating certain textures in their work. When I asked they told me to experiment with traditional skills away from the computer. This hardback does the trick perfectly. It provides information on drawing, painting, print making, digital media and photography, applied techniques such as ceramic tiles and stained glass, and conservation and framing. It tells you how to mix paints, how to apply the media, what brushes to use, the different types of pencils available and the use of other tools such as rollers and painting knives. You can see a great piece of artwork in the gallery and you can say to yourself..ahh that's painting impasto let's give that a go instead of saying how in the...did they do that. I'm not saying that it will teach you to paint like Da Vinci or any other great artist but it certainly gives you an idea on how to create a certain aesthetic. All the illustrations are in color and printed on quality gloss paper. The text is easy to read and appropriate examples are provided. It's not a book that engages in a serious examination of color theory,composition or the complete history of art, though some color is explored in the appendices and introductions are given to each style. It's a straight forward techniques book that will get you playing around for ages.

Everything you ever wanted to know...
This is a superb reference book for professional artists, art teachers and serious amateurs. It provides detailed answers to all sorts of technical questions that most 'how-to' books do not even touch on, starting with the exact composition and property of every pigment, and then patiently going through every medium and technique in drawing, painting, printmaking, digital media, applied techniques and conservation.

Excellent reference book
Artist's Handbook
This arrived really promptly and in good condition and has been a very useful reference book for every aspect and application of Fine Art. As a undergraduate it is a worthy tool for any student or non student - as useful a tool as pencil or paint brush I would say.