Lee Hammond’s Big Book of Drawing

Author : Lee Hammond Number of Pages : 240 Publisher : North Light Books List Price : $22.99 Amazon Price : $10.48 Used Price : $10.48

Product Description

Now beginning artists can get all the drawing help they need in one convenient place.

Bestselling author Lee Hammond is known for her clear, basic methods for drawing nearly any subject. This giant book brings together the best projects from her other titles into one super-sized guide. Readers will find: - Popular subjects like people, animals, flowers and nature - An encouraging "You Can Do It" section - Clear step-by-step instructions to guarantee success - Chapters on choosing materials and mastering basic techniques

This entire book showcases realistic, appealing artwork that's truly achievable. Anyone can find creative success with Lee Hammond leading the way!

Customer reviews

Pencil man by .. Joseph Gardner (Indianapolis)
This is an excellent text for the beginning drawing student, and for those who need help with the correct proportions for the human face. I recommend it highly, and will use it when I prepare for woodcarving greenmen.

Lee Hammonds Big Book of Drawing by .. R.man ()
An excellent book to perfect drawing techniques. Uses grid method to learn to sketch difficult human features. Includes many of the same learning sequences using colored pencil. A good book to stimulate art students into trying to draw more difficult subjects, especially people and animals.

Look Elsewhere by .. phileein sophia ()
To help you understand my background and justification for criticizing an otherwise well received book, I am an accomplished portrait artist and teacher with more than 25 years of experience. Throughout the years, many workshop students have shown me books they've purchased in order to learn to draw realistically. There are absolutely techniques to drawing and it is a skill that virtually anyone with the time and patience can learn to do at least passably well. I am not an elitist that believes only those who are 'gifted' can learn to draw. There most definitely are good books that can help the beginning student learn these techniques so I have nothing inherently against them. I have used books on occasion to learn specific techniques and found them to be quite beneficial. The problem I have is with this author (all of her books suffer from the same defect) as her "art" is utterly soulless. Her drawings have as much feeling to them as a 1940's Sears & Roebuck catalog's fashion drawings. To an untrained eye, her drawings look spot on, as technically they might be but they are not art, just as an architectural rendering of a future building is spot-on, and it's also not art. You will do much better with Betty Edwards, who has a multitude of books just for the beginner with a far better result. If you are looking for more advanced techniques, Juliette Aristides' "Classical Drawing Atelier" and "Classical Painting Atelier" are wonderful. Granted, the idea of an atelier in a book is absurd and many true pre-20th century techniques have been lost, but these books will certainly teach you how to draw in a much more believable, and artistic, way. Another great alternative is to get books which show the drawings of masters you admire and study them. Better still, if you can, go to a museum and see them (and then study them!) I have no vested interest in recommending these other books or options but I have seen what works and every time I see a bright-eyed student with a Lee Hammond book I cringe because they could do so much better.

Great book on drawing! by .. Eagles Soar (USA)
Lee Hammond's newest book on drawing covers a range of different areas. Great book! I would recommend that you get ALL of her books, though, not just this one. In her other books, she covers ONE area in depth, such as faces or animals, or still life, in other books. This book is fabulous, but you need to get all of her books in order to get the best instuction on what tools you need, etc. to create a masterpiece.

Gift book by .. E. Jenks (Elk Grove, CA USA)
The book was in very good condition. However, it did have some light finger smudges on the Title Page. The book arrived exactly when it was promised. I am very pleased with this purchase.

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Ed Emberley's Complete Funprint Drawing Book

Author : Ed Emberley Number of Pages : 80 Publisher : L,B Kids List Price : $11.99 Amazon Price : $6.27 Used Price : $6.00

Product Description

ver two million copies of Ed Emberley's innovative drawing books have been sold throughout the years. For the first time, we present a two-in-one edition of two of his most popular titles-Ed Emberley's Fingerprint Drawing Book and Ed Emberley's Great Thumbprint Drawing Book. Colorful step-by-step drawings show how to turn your thumbprints into owls, pigs, fish, or basketball players simply by adding the letters I, V, Y, L, O, and U. These titles will not only spur creativity in every child but make it easy and fun as well.

Customer reviews

Ed Emberly thumb/fingerprint books are awesome! by .. Mom To C and V (Cary, IL United States)
My kids love these books because they can create pretty complicated things (Santa, sleigh and 8 reindeer for example) with a few fingerprints and a few lines! They love, love love his books! So do I

No batteries needed or wanted for this fun! by .. alykat (ny)
Yet another generation of fun from this brilliant book! This one allows the child (or adults even) to do the thinking instead of the toy. It really does generate hours and hours of creative play.

A Classic by .. Latin Pod (USA)
Ed Emberley's simple drawing style is easy to emulate and can provide hours of entertainment for children - as well as adults! The book fosters creativity and encourages the artist to develop original designs. In addition, the artwork developed by the young artist may be cherished for generations to come, since it features their fingerprints.

Pages of fun by .. Happy Days (USA)
Great craft ideas for preschoolers through grade school. Make sure to have the washable stamp pads ready for when the book arrives.

Lots of fun!! by .. Amy Smith ()
We got this for my 6-year-old daughter. She has used it well. There are so many things to do in the book that she hasn't gotten bored. We haven't had much luck finding washable stamp pads that easily wash off her fingers though! Her stained fingers are worth it though!!

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Art for Kids: Drawing: The Only Drawing Book You'll Ever Need to Be the Artist You've Always Wanted to Be

Author : Kathryn Temple Number of Pages : 112 Publisher : Lark Books List Price : $17.95 Amazon Price : $12.21 Used Price : $29.41

Product Description

Customer reviews

Impressed even the art teacher by .. Martha Queenan (Cincinnati, OH)
Art for Kids: Drawing: The Only Drawing Book You'll Ever Need to Be the Artist You've Always Wanted to Be
Found this book to be perfect for the budding artist
in the 12 year old range. Very detailed and yet
you can pick and chose what you want to work on.
Many helpful hints that I didn't pick up til my
college art classes. Great gift.

Great kids' art book by .. Mom of 3 in NC ()
My 11-year old son loves to draw. His skills are self taught, and he has checked out MANY books from the library over the years. He recently checked out this book and declared it one of the best he'd ever seen. (I bought it from Amazon for a Christmas present.) Even though he already understands shading, perspective, etc., he thought this book helped him improve even more. The book also has a lot on drawing people and faces, which can be very challenging.

Great for all ages! by .. Kate Kate (Pratt, KS United States)
I ordered this book based on some of the reviews I had read and I am very impressed with it. Though it is geared for kids, it is great for older artists as well. It breaks down steps and procedures wonderfully and presents them in a very informative many. If you want to learn the basics of drawing I would strongly recommend this book. Enjoy!

Great Beginner Drawing Book by .. Tracy Porter (VA United States)
We purchased this book for our 7-year old daughter. The book is written and illustrated in a manner that she was able to open the book, read it and go by the illustrations by herself. She has been using this book almost daily since Christmas.

Excellent beginning book! by .. CCGal (USA)
This book is excellent for the beginning art teacher and drawing student. I am basing a lot of my curriculum on ideas inspired by this book in my upcoming school year. It takes your thoroughly through each step/stage of learning to draw so that anyone can master it! Great illustrations and ideas are perfectly fit onto each page, without annoying "materpieces" that you don't think possible. By the end, you will be drawing with the best of them-- and students will too!

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Scribbles: A Really Giant Drawing and Coloring Book

Author : Taro Gomi Number of Pages : 368 Publisher : Chronicle Books List Price : $19.99 Amazon Price : $11.23 Used Price : $8.99

Features

• This book is not just for coloring, it's also for doodling, drawing, imagining and thinking!
• Illustrated by renowned childrens book illustrator Taro Gomi
• Playful drawings, funny scenarios and fun-to-follow instructions
• Contains 368 pages and one color throughout
• Book size: 8 1/4 x 11 11/16 inches

Product Description

This book is for coloring, doodling, drawing, imagining, and thinking!

Customer reviews

Great book, but watch out for inappropriate things. by .. Cookie Cutter (San Diego, CA)
This is a really cool book, and I've given it to three children in my family, all who have loved it. HOWEVER, this Christmas I gave it to my nephew who found a page in which the project is to "Color the things you like." The page shows various items, some of which are a whiskey bottle and shot glass, beer cans, and a syringe and spoon. If the publisher reads this, please consider removing those items as I'm sure it is mainly children who receive this book, even though the age range says "up to 99". (Note: This is really a 5-star book, but I rated it as 1-star with the hopes that the publisher is more likely to notice poor ratings.)

Love the concept of this coloring book! by .. S. Johnson (Glenville, NY)
This coloring book is the perfect coloring book. It's non-traditional, but it encourages your child to build upon his/her imagination and express their individuality as well as personal artistic flair. It provides the foundation for a lot of coloring fun!

Scribbles by .. David L. A. Cragoe (Thousand Oaks, CA)
Love this series of book!! I ended up buying one for each of my eight kids ranging from 16 to 4 years old.

Fun! by .. Idaho Britta (Meridian, ID United States)
My four year old got this out of my gift pile (to give to others), and had a great time doing the first half of the book. Needless to say, it works for almost any age! It gives you the beginning of a picture (usually) and gives you guidance on what to draw. Here's an umbrella, draw some rain. Fun and creative gift for any age!

Truly fun for all ages by .. Joseph P. Carty (Kansas City)
I bought this book as something my 3 y/o and I could do together. We finally pulled it out tonight (I was saving it for some quality alone time) and I LOVE IT! This is just very basic generic coloring book and each page has a simple instruction to add to or finish the scribble on the page. You can interpret it however you want and do with it what you please. Follow the instructions literally, abstract something, create something completely different. This book definitely inspired creativity in both me and my son. My mom is pretty artsy and I am going to order one for her. I'd love to see what she'd do with it. Great choice if you're looking for something different and I totally agree it's good for any age.
As for the dead person...if your child can read, let them draw a dead person. It's about interpretation and creativity. They don't have to draw a corpse. Maybe they choose to draw Abraham Lincoln or Jesus. If they can't read, tell them to draw whatever you'd like to see.

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The Drawing Breakthrough Book: A Shortcut to Artistic Excellence

Author : John Hastings Number of Pages : 103 Publisher : Draw Three Lines Pub List Price : $15.95 Amazon Price : $9.72 Used Price : $9.64

Product Description

The Drawing Breakthrough Book: A Shortcut to Artistic Excellence builds on and transforms standard drawing concepts. It presents a practical approach to creating line drawings that will enable nearly anyone to see in a fresh way and to draw more accurately. In Part One, you'll learn many of the secrets to seeing and drawing like an artist. In Part Two, you will master the building-block lines. To assist you in this mastery, you'll use breakthrough techniques to practice drawing squares, circles, and ellipses. As you progress, you'll choose and practice drawing simple objects in more and more advanced arrangements. In Part Three, you will first learn how to apply basic principles of composition. Then you'll apply those principles plus your mastery of the building-block lines to composing, seeing, and drawing objects with all types of lines.

Customer reviews

No Breakthrough Here by .. R. Kane (California)
The author is not a professional artist, but is in electronics and technical communication, and the book reads like it. Laborious and confusing descriptions of "visualized" and "implied" lines and rectangles and "points" seem like an engineering text. There is no "breakthrough" here; you can find these subjects better and more lucidly discussed in many other books on how to draw. The book seems padded out with unnecessary drawings that don't really tell you anything new or helpful, e.g., pgs. 54-56 (I don't think looking at subjects through a drinking glass helps you), and pgs. 94-97(if a person can't tell whether or not a line is straight or curved, they should go to an optometrist to be checked for astigmatism). This book isn't worth the money and would only confuse a beginner.

Move Your Drawing Skills Up a Level by .. Virginia Allain (Poinciana, FL)
I've been drawing forever, mostly little cartoons, but wanted to move into nature sketching. It was frustrating that my mushrooms, chipmunks and trees didn't resemble the vision I had in my head. Luckily for me, I discovered the Drawing Breakthrough Book.
Right away, the sections on measuring angles, working with guidelines, and seeing shapes showed me some areas where I was going wrong. Sometimes people say, "I can't even draw a straight line." Well, it isn't all that easy, so the author devotes a whole chapter to mastering straight lines. At last, something to help me understand perspective. After he breaks down a topic and helps the reader visualize how it works, then there are exercises to put the technique to work. For the chapter on straight lines, the exercise involves drawing boxes stacked haphazardly with plenty of angles to challenge the art student.
The next chapter tackles Mastering Circular Lines. There's also a chapter on elliptic lines, and one on composition.
The book includes plenty of visuals and step-by-step instructions and examples. Here's to better drawing in the future.

An Art Instructor's re-review by .. Hillary Sadur (Honolulu, HI)
I posted a lengthy review some time ago and it must have gotten lost in the web...so, here's a copy of my "blog" entry for my digital art classes at lvsonline.com:

I seldom recommend books, other than Betty Edwards, "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain", because they all appear to be variations on a theme. Even when using search engines, the answers are hard to come by. I recently had a student who really could have used this book! I will be recommending other books in the future if I am particularly impressed by them or if students can profit by another's words.

John Hastings asked that I take a look at his book "The Drawing Breakthrough Book (A Shortcut to Artistic Excellence)" some time ago. I was flattered by his request and intrigued by his humbleness. He just happens to be one heck of a nice guy to deal with. Due to time constraints, I procrastinated until I could actually "read" the book. In more years than I want to admit, I've read and also own a lot of "how-to" draw/paint/sketch, etc. books.

I have finally found one that I can unequivocally recommend. (Perhaps it was the delicious cover that got me, or maybe the title or maybe the fact that he was an ex-frustrated student.) No matter! John has discovered yet another "missing link" in the usual approach to drawing.

As an instructor in both digital and real-life art, I've had the occasional student who couldn't seem to grasp the "traditional" ways to understand and apply even simple theory. I've figuratively torn my hair out in trying to explain a simple theory. This is where John's book is the answer!

With great pleasure, I can tell you that he has managed to address his words to those who fit into what I call the "stuck in the left side of the brain" students/artists. They need logic in order to do the illogical without becoming intoxicated with my fermented coconut milk and with a minimum of confusion and a maximum of efficiency.

To paraphrase his news release): His premise is that the key within every drawn picture has three types of simple "building-block" lines, which can be utilized to draw anything from the simple to the complex, from the primitive to the elegant. His book offers the results of John's years of experience and research in the form of step-by-step, "student-friendly" instructions and exercises that anyone can employ in order to quickly achieve competence in their own artwork.

To put it simply, you get more "bang for the buck" packed into 100 pages of wonderful illustrations, simple explanations and great tips. It's unique, just as John is -- someone who isn't afraid to profess his frustration with the traditional and is willing to share his knowledge!

Don't just purchase it and add it to your library! Take some time and really try out his technique(s). I've posted the link in my list of recommended books!

:) Hillary
P.S. John has given me permission to post some of his tips, so I shall be tantalizing you with them in the future...LOL

4.5* Analytical Intro to Drawing by .. Neal J. Pollock (VA USA)
This is a very basic, step-by-step introduction to pencil line drawing. It's folio size is deceiving as it consists of about 100 pages with 3 diagrams per page. So, it has relatively few words--yet it uses them very efficiently indeed. It is divided into 3 sections (Starting to Draw, Mastering the Building-Block Lines, & Expanding Your Drawing Skills) consisting of 8 chapters. The author's basic approach is to create visualized reference points for the object being drawn which are transferred to the drawing via standard lines, arcs, etc. He uses household items (e.g. a glass, tissue box) to illustrate this as well as perspective. His teaching method is very analytical--breaking objects down into their component "parts"--i.e. points & lines.

Indeed, he emphasizes observation & visualization which are useful far beyond drawing--he quotes p. 57 Bill Harvey: "If you are familiar with an object that's very similar to the object you're viewing, your mind projects its stored image & you won't truly see what's actually in front of you." This is rather profound IMHO. He also includes some lovely art quotes such as p. 82 Georgia O'Keefe's "Art is filling space in a beautiful way."

While most of the book is more science than art, chapter 7's description of drawing composition enters the world of creativity--more art than science. I found some of his observations here highly useful for photography & art appreciation as well as for drawing. Thus, this book has value even for those not interested in developing drawing skills. Of course, to really use these skills one must practice, practice, practice until the methods become automatic--and a little natural artistic ability wouldn't hurt either!

A complete drawing course in one slim volume by .. Jessica Lux (Rosamond, CA)
John Hastings has released a complete drawing course in one deceptively slim volume. I am not an artist nor have I ever aspired to draw anything more than geometric doodles, but I was intrigued by the story of John Hastings, a man so frustrated with traditional art lessons that he applied his professional electronics background to writing a manual about the process of learning to draw. Hastings has written a how-to book like no other, one that breaks drawing down into manageable, digestible pieces.

Lessons are presented in a two-column format, with sketch samples or black and white photographs running down one side, and explanations on the other. The firm organization of the book was appealing to me, as is the fact that I can repeat lessons as necessary as I work at my own pace through the course. The only supplies needed for following Hastings's course are a pencil, eraser, and paper. He doesn't even require that you have an arsenal of pencils - this book is focused solely on line drawings.

After finishing the exercises prescribed by Hastings, which range from seeing to measuring to drawing, the reader will view the world differently. He or see will see new shapes, appreciate composition, and having the confidence to translate a real-world image into a paper drawing.

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