Book Description
This is simply the best and most complete course in botanical illustration ever produced, with each chapter a perfectly constructed and self-contained class. Created in conjunction with the internationally renowned Eden Project—home of the only jungle in captivity—it’s put together by two leading figures in the Project’s famed art school, and uses many beautiful works from its students. Artists and plant lovers will find a wealth of practical information, with easy-to-follow exercises and case studies. The priceless advice encompasses everything from honing observational skills and plant dissection procedures to color mixing and applying watercolor. Adding highlights, producing a pleasing composition, and developing a personal style—all the building blocks for achieving excellence are here.
Customer Reviews:
Botanical illustration.......2007-05-12
This is an in depth clear book about the process of botanical illustration. Well written and great pictures. Recommend highly!
Book Description
This inspiring guide provides artists with the knowledge they need to paint watercolor landscapes. It features easy-to-follow exercises illustrated in an accessible format that invites readers to jump in and begin painting right away. Artists of all skill levels will learn from:
-30 step-by-step demonstrations
-Chapters that focus on basic landscape elements, such as land, water and sky
-Special mini demos for capturing important details, including trees, mountains, waves, clouds, sunsets and more.
Most importantly, this guide's instruction teaches artists the foundations of strong composition and encourages them to pursue their own individual style to create landscapes that are compelling and unique.
Customer Reviews:
Nice book to buy but .......2007-08-23
Its a nice book but if you already have the other book from Gordon Mackenzie, I wouldn't recommend it. Basically half the book almost has the same things.
If you don't have any book from him.... its a nice buy. you will enjoy reading it.
Fine book to learn from, if you will practice........2007-08-09
I bought the "Watercolorist's Essential Notebook"(WEN) and this "WEN - Landscapes," fearing they would be the same with a few different illustrations. (I was specifically looking for ideas on mountains). I was surprised that the first 20 pages contained the same material, but presented with landscapes theme. The rest of the book had many ideas and suggestions, not just rehashed WEN. There was enough new material to warrant this purchase. I should keep trying the presented techniques, but there was enough to satisfy my desire. For less than the cost of a lesson (I consider shipping/handling the same as using my vehicle to drive to the lesson) I have hours of experimenting ahead of me. The illustrations of the effects of each technique are very good, and the "step by step" illustrations aren't cookie cutter recipes, but suggestions for your own experiments. As a "new watercolorist" (meaning I haven't sold anything yet, but I am at the point of feeling I now could), I was surprised at how well I took to, and how much I learned from, both WEN books. I would say suitable from the start for beginners, and advanced students to working.
Beginner or advanced, if you paint you NEED this book!.......2007-07-13
I was so pleased with this book that I bought the author's previous one, "The Watercolorist's Essential Notebook" and was just as happy with it! I learned so much from this book, and still continue to learn from it. I consider myself a beginner as I have only been studying watercolor for less than a year, but I took it to class and showed it to my instructor. She was so impressed by it that she bought it to use in her classes. Even with an MFA, she found information that was new to her. The author has a wonderful, playful style that makes learning exciting and fun. Whatever your skill level, you owe it to yourself to own this book!
Excellent for beginners and all.......2007-07-12
Mr. MacKenzie shows techniques which all can utilize. I have been doing watercolor paintings for about two and half years with some success. I find his suggestions a great help. He is precise and forthright in his endeavor to share his artistic techniques with each reader. It's a great book.
The Watercolorist's Essential Notebook: Landscapes.......2007-05-09
Excellent review of ways to do landscapes. Good techniques and interresting form.
Book Description
This giant treasury of watercolor florals brings together a popular medium with a popular subject matter. With North Light's Big Book of Painting Watercolor Flowers, readers can:
* Paint all their favorite flowers in watercolor--everything from wild daffodils and gladiola to hollyhock and mums
* Brush up on the basics, including composition, wet-into-wet washes, mixing color and stretching watercolor paper
* Create finished pieces in no time with easy step-by-step demonstrations
Page after page of gorgeous artwork and clear instruction make this the perfect choice for artists of all levels. Painting flowers has never been easier!
Customer Reviews:
North Light's Big Book of Painting watercolor flowers.......2005-08-23
Very nice book,looked like a new book
nice book.......2005-04-15
Very instructive. Many different styles of painting demonstrated in a way easy to follow. Very well worth the money.
Book Description
Filled with inspirational artwork and solid instruction, this guide will delight loyal acrylic painters and encourage artists from other mediums to cross over. Greer's instruction capitalizes on the brilliant colors available in acrylics and shows artists how to paint with them using proven "watercolor" and "oil" techniques.
Starting with 16 mini-demos, artists are encouraged to:
*Jump right in and follow step-by-step instructions for mastering techniques such as masking, splattering, underpainting, washes and more
*Learn tips and tricks for rendering many elements of landscape including trees, flowers, roads and reflections
The second section of the book features four complete painting demonstrations that challenge artists to exercise their new painting techniques through a variety of landscape subjects. Two demonstrations show artists how to use acrylics as an effective base for other mediums.
Customer Reviews:
Highly instructive.......2007-02-15
Hugh Greer is a master of landscape and architectural painting. His innovative techniques are unique; the result of his former career as an architectural renderer. I can't recommend this book enough...
Acrylic Landscape Painting Techniques.......2006-07-31
I like the book. I like the way Hugh Greer paints and I would like to go out and do likewise. The beginning starts out with full explanation - then he gives you ways to use what he wants to teach you - but he does it with very complicated examples and not much explanation. He skips a lot of steps. I am still trying some of his ideas and hope that I can learn them because I really like his results. This book is much, much more helpful if you get his DVDs, he has three -first is very basic, but the next two go a long way to explaining some of the steps he left out.
Gained knowledge from the first page on.......2004-07-02
I appreciate the complexity of nature and the way this book relates to the observing and using your inner feelings to paint. Thank you for such a good book to paint from and use often.
Wonderful technique!.......2004-07-02
HAVE LEARNED SO MUCH FROM THE GREAT TECHNIQUES IN THIS BOOK. i RECOMMEND IT HIGHLY.
Somewhat Lacking.......2003-03-03
I bought this book hoping it would give me basic information on color mixing, brush technique and composition. It did not. The book has some beautiful examples of the author's art but gives very little information as to how he got there. It is not a step-by-step instruction book. Mr. Greer does not tell how to handle the acrylic medium as for as how to mix and apply the paint to get various results. If you are a beginning landscape painter looking for basic instruction in acrylic painting techniques, buy another book. If you have the basics down pretty well then this book may be for you. The author is a good landscape painter but not the greatest teacher.
Book Description
With this book's no-clutter approach, artists will be tackling two of their favorite subjects--watercolor and landscapes--in minutes.
Reid's quick-start guide gives beginners a basic overview of materials, terms and exercises to get them off on the right foot. Then it's on to tackling more than 25 step-by-step demonstrations that cover all the basic landscape techniques. Readers will learn to paint essential elements, such as water, mountains, buildings and skies, one at a time. These easy-to-follow exercises arm artists with a set of tools, techniques and principles to enrich all their future landscapes.
This highly visual guide also includes detailed advice on how to overcome the challenges of painting outdoors and when traveling. It's never been easier--or quicker--to have fun painting outdoor scenes.
Book Description
Learn how to paint exquisite flower portraits in watercolour, following Billy Showell's highly detailed, step-by-step instructions. Packed with stunning pictures and technical advice, this book is truly inspirational. Billy Showell's exquisite and technically brilliant watercolour flower portraits are beautifully presented in this highly informative, lavishly illustrated book. Packed with information on drawing and painting techniques, colour mixing and composition, it is an invaluable source of ideas and inspiration for anyone who wants to develop their flower painting skills, whether or not they have any previous experience.
Customer Reviews:
Surprise for Painter wife.......2007-04-11
My wife was thrilled with this book that was added to her resources. She has used it already.
It's all in the details.......2006-10-05
This book improves on many previous painting books by giving very specific step-by-step instructions. Each step is beautifully photographed and carefully explained. This makes it a must have for both the beginner and painter.
Billy's paintings bring a contemporary feel to botanical art. Her work is meticulous and detailed. The Artist's talks about all aspects of creating a painting including choosing paints, brushes and paper for the execution of your work. Her comments about composition and her approach to painting help guide you to develop your own approach.
I highly recommend this lovely book.
Book Description
This beloved artist and teacher shares her proven technique for painting vivid floral arrangements.
Helen Van Wyk's legacy lives on through her paintings. This guide reveals her secrets to painting flowers of all kinds in oil with easy-to-follow instructions and examples of her own work. Intricate floral anatomy is broken down into manageable shapes and lines that artists of any skill level can master.
Customer Reviews:
Painting Flowers the Van Wyk Way.......2007-04-02
Another great book from this author and painter. Again, a great variety of work and examples are shown, with excellent practical and easy to understand instructions.
Flower Painting.......2006-05-21
This book is really well organized in a step by step understanding on the basics of compostion, color mixing (the actual paint to obtain a certain color),color fundamentals, brushes, and background when painting flowers. If a person is new to painting, the basics are here. However, it does lack detailed step by step demonstrations that will guide a person from the start of a painting to the finish. Only brief general demontrations are in this book. If a person wants to know how to brush stroke a leaf, make a stem, and a pedal I would suggest in addition to using this book another book on brush stroke techniques. There are lots of beautiful paintings in this book. Just looking at the photos helped me to figure out the brush strokes but then I have some experience in painting, mostly portraits. Not having painting lots of flowers before, I wondered "do I start in the middle? or the outside of a flower?" I don't beleive it is mentioned in this book. I found in another book that I would start in the center when painting roses, and tulips are different, and so are poppies on where to begin. A rough outline on the sphere and anatomy of flowers is given in Helen's book which realy helps when painting.
exceptional book.......2000-06-10
As a lover of flowers and a painter I truly enjoyed this book. Readers will find a step by step guide into the world of painting and be guided into the specifics of painting flowers. Tha author gives a through and one of the most complete explanations of the basic components of a painting. Her explanations for the values Composition,Drawing, Motivation, Color, Harmony and Tone value are excellent and well worth the price of the book and make you feel part of an actual art class. Illustrations are magnificent and the authors personal experience and tips are nopt only helpful in the art of flower painting, amateur or professional, but become actual blessings. It is truly a book worth owning.
Book Description
A unique guide that will teach complete beginners how to paint a beautiful floral watercolour in just one weekend.
Beginners recognise that they need to acquire basic painting skills - but at the same time they are eager to produce their first finished painting. This popular 'weekend' formula allows them to do both in a limited amount of time - to build skills gradually and to produce an attractive, frameable painting that they can hang on their walls by the end of the weekend.
The author starts by introducing the materials required, and then leads readers through a series of watercolour technique exercises designed to provide a basic grounding in the skills needed for this subject area.
This instruction is followed by six weekend projects for painting a range of popular floral subjects: a single flower; a group of white flowers; an indoors still life; an outdoors close-up; autumn flowers; and wild flowers in the landscape. Each course starts with practice exercises to be completed on the Saturday; readers are then ready to complete the full watercolour painting on the Sunday.
Clear instructions accompany step-by-step photographs throughout, and technical information is given in special feature boxes.
Customer Reviews:
Thanks, Jill!.......2004-04-11
After months of sitting with my preschooler at the easel and painting nothing but crude daisies, I bought this book. It's been three days and I am already painting flowers that look like flowers. The techniques are simple and are explained well with text and photographs. I find that many how-to-paint books are filled with the artist's own finished works but never show the intimidated beginner how to get there. This book is different in that it takes the reader through a step-by-step process that begins with the first stroke and ends with the final product. I highly recommend this book to the beginning watercolorist.
Book Description
A unique guide that will show complete beginners how to paint a watercolor landscape in just one weekend.
Beginners recognize that they need to acquire basic painting skills - but at the same time they are eager to produce a finished painting that they can hang on their walls. This popular weekend formula allows them to do just that - to build skills gradually and produce an attractive, frameable painting in a limited amount of time.
The author starts by introducing the materials required for painting watercolour landscapes, then leads readers through a series of initial techniques designed to provide a basic grounding in the skills required for this subject area. This instruction is followed by eight short courses for painting a range of popular landscape subjects: skies and clouds; water; mountains and lakes; trees and foliage; buildings and textures; reflections in the landscape; winter landscapes; summer landscapes. Each course starts with practice exercises to be completed on the Saturday - readers are then ready to complete the full watercolour painting on the Sunday.
Clear instructions accompany step-by-step photographs throughout, and technical information is given in special feature boxes.
Frank Halliday runs landscape painting courses from his home in Norfolk and demonstrates to art societies throughout England. He works for Winsor & Newston as a demonstrator and also teaches workshops for The Artist and Leisure Painter magazines. He has written one previous watercolour book and has made four watercolour painting videos. He lives in Felthorpe, Norfolk.
Customer Reviews:
An Oustanding Beginner Book for learning Landscape Painting in Watercolor.......2007-09-29
This is a wonderful book for learning watercolor painting of landscapes. It is well-organized, has beautiful illustrations, simplifies instructions so that the beginner will not feel overwhelmed, and makes the lessons interesting and fun.
It begins with basic techniques such as washes and brush techniques using a 3-step illustrated method. Mediums, masking, composition, linear perspective, aerial perspective, color are also briefly covered--just enough to get you started, but not to overwhelm the beginner. The author suggests a few basic color mixes for the most popular landscape subjects, and explains cool vs warm colors.
Most of the book is devoted to allowing the reader hands-on painting experience with different landscape projects such as Project I--Skies and Clouds--clear sky, cumulus clouds, cirrus clouds, in a step-by-step method with clear and concise illustrations. Next, rainclouds and dramatic skies (beams of sunlight through clouds).
This book simplifies watercolor painting so that it does not become overwhelming, but also, the beginner can attain beautiful results by the teacher's simplified methods of teaching, and the wonderful illustrated steps.
BRIEFLY, here are some other exciting things you will learn in this great book. Country scene with a village visible in distance, water--sunlight on the water, reflections, moving water, waterfall, rough sea, moody sea, mountains and lakes (an exercise is given for learning tonal recession), mountain structure, snow, misty mountain exercise (a 5-step, 2 page lesson), early morning by the lake ( an 8-step, 4-page exercise), trees and foliage (a 5-step 2 page exercise on painting a winter tree ) another exercise on foliage, tree shapes, trees in a setting..
As the book progresses, each lesson/exercise builds on previous lessons and becomes more complex and detailed.
Next, Buildings and textures (exercise in light and shade) (exercise in simple brickwork) windows. Then, a 6-page steped lesson on a provencial farm in 9 steps. Project 6 is Reflections with a lesson on "puddles on a farm track (5 steped lesson), next, buildings reflected in a flooded field --a 2-page exercise, reflected boats, reflections in a village pond, winter fields, etc. etc.
This is a fantastic book for learning watercolor landscapes. I highly recommend it--the exercises are simplified but exciting. It's a great book!
Customer Reviews:
It's a Splash!.......2000-08-26
Liz Donovin is not only a beautiful artist, she's an excellent teacher. I study watercolors exclusively, and mostly from books. Her examples and color diagrams are truly worth a thousand words each, and her text is tightly knit into lines of priceless information, insight and instruction. Liz generously shares her secrets of mastering light, texture, and color. That's just for starters. I could go on and on. My husband ordered the book as a gift for me, under the condition I take my twice borrowed, overdue copy back to the library before I put us into hock! I did return it...but it was a long farewell! Thanks Liz, and BRAVA!
It's a Splash!.......2000-08-26
Liz Donovin is not only a beautiful artist, she's an excellent teacher. I study watercolors exclusively, and mostly from books. Her examples and color diagrams are truly worth a thousand words each, and her text is tightly knit into lines of priceless information, insight and instruction. Liz generously shares her secrets of mastering light, texture, and color. That's just for starters. I could go on and on. My husband ordered the book as a gift for me, under the condition I take my twice borrowed, overdue copy back to the library before I put us into hock! I did return it...but it was a long farewell! Thanks Liz, and BRAVA!
It's a Splash!.......2000-08-24
Liz Donovan's understanding of color, texture, and the moods of light is remarkable. She's an excellent teacher. Her own work is beautiful and inspiring to say the least. Liz shares her tricks and secrets of detail in diagrams and pictures that truly are worth a thousand words. She's also a wizard with words, by the way, very easy to follow her.
Enjoy this master artist! This book is a joy, and my husband is making it a gift..When it arrives, the library can have their (twice borrowed/overdue) copy back...but not before! It's worth every cent! Brava, Liz Donovan!
A must have book for watercolor enthusiasts........1999-01-24
In my opinion, Liz Donovan is an outstanding watercolor artist. I love the emotion that she captures with each painting. Just looking through her book, inspires me to paint. Throughout the book she gives multiple tips on creating that perfect look. This book is a good choice for the still life artist who wants to try his/her hand at watercolor.
Wonderfull Book For Still Life Painters.......1998-10-28
This is a wonderful book. After discussing the materials and some basic watercolor techniques the following chapters provide demonstration projects to apply the techniques. Ms. Donovan's paintings are a nice balance between washy-style watercolors and hyper-realistic.
She really shines on the demonstrations of painting reflective surfaces such as silver, glass or brass and also woodgrain and marble (which was a wonderful surprise since I'd never seen marble discussed before in any other watercolor book I own).
She also discusses composition, the effect of lighting and set up of your own still lifes for maximum impact.
I have done several of the projects and plan to do all of them. My own paintings have improved since applying the concepts and techniques the book demonstrates.
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Books Index
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General
| Instructional & How-To
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
The Art of Botanical Painting
Beautiful Botanicals: Painting and Drawing Flowers and Plants
Botanical Illustration in Watercolor (Practical Art Books)
How to Draw Plants: The Techniques of Botanical Illustration
Botanical Illustration: Painting with Watercolours
