- Paperback: 360 pages
- Publisher: For Dummies; 1 edition (Feb 28 2003)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 076455476X
- ISBN-13: 978-0764554766
- Product Dimensions: 23.5 x 18.7 x 2.2 cm
- Shipping Weight: 544 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #105,568 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Details |
Product Description
Product Description
On a simple piece of paper, a fierce bird of prey can swoop down upon its terrified victim, an adoring father can share laughter with the infant daughter cradled in his arms, raindrops can glisten on the hood of a vintage sports car, a lightening bolt can cut across the night, offering a glimpse of trees ominously silhouetted against the blackness. Drawing can enrich your life in extraordinary and unexpected ways. Drawing your everyday experiences can change how you and others see the world, while drawing from imagination can give rise to fantastic new worlds. And, despite what you may believe, it’s something just about anyone can learn to do.
Drawing For Dummies offers you a fun, easy way to learn drawing basics. Its author, professional illustrator and long-time art educator Brenda Hoddinott, has a simple philosophy—that only you can teach you to draw. With that in mind, she arms you with the tools you need to explore the basics and then coaches you through 30 hands-on drawing projects. You'll quickly
- Conquer the basics of line and shading
- Develop an eye for basic shapes and contours
- Discover how to create the illusion of three dimensions
- Render still-life subjects and landscapes
- Bring animals and people to vivid life on the page
Brenda helps you tune into your right brain and see the world as an artist does. You’ll discover how to break things down into basic lines and shapes and then reassemble them on the page. Other topics covered include:
- Understanding and exercising the basic skills of drawing lines and shapes, adding life and depth with shading, and rendering textures
- Mastering the fundamentals of composition and planning drawings
- Creating lifelike doodles and cartoon characters
- Drawing the natural environment including both plants and animals
- Keeping a sketchbook and drawing from memory
- Drawing people, starting with babies and exploring the human face from childhood to old age
It’s never too late to unleash the artist within. Let Drawing For Dummies put you on the road of discovery and self-expression through drawing.
From the Back Cover
Hone your drawing skills with 30 hands-on projects
Discover how to draw still-lifes, landscapes, animals, people, and more!
Worried that you don’t have enough talent to be an artist? Relax! All it takes is some practice – and the tips and techniques you’ll find in this friendly guide. Beginning with the very basics – lines, shape, shading, textures, perspective – artist Brenda Hoddinott shows you how to draw just about anything, from flower petals to a child’s eye.
The Dummies Way
- Explanations in plain English
- "Get in, get out" information
- Icons and other navigational aids
- Tear-out cheat sheet
- Top ten lists
- A dash of humor and fun
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
First Sentence
"On a simple sheet of paper, a magnificent eagle can soar over a snow-covered mountain, a small child can hug an adoring puppy, dewdrops on a rose can glisten in the morning sun, a mermaid can swim with dolphins under the ocean, or a lightning storm can ill" Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
"On a simple sheet of paper, a magnificent eagle can soar over a snow-covered mountain, a small child can hug an adoring puppy, dewdrops on a rose can glisten in the morning sun, a mermaid can swim with dolphins under the ocean, or a lightning storm can ill" Read the first page
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Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Most helpful customer reviews
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
Could stand a lot of improvement,
By A Customer
This review is from: Drawing For Dummies (Paperback)
I've used a number of For Dummies books and have been very impressed, but this one is a bit of a let-down. I'm returning to drawing after years away and was hoping this would provide a bit of a refresher course, but so far I've only found it moderately useful.The book has a number of strengths, including a positive attitude that's important for beginners to latch on to in order to avoid discouragement. The author is also great technician with the pencil, particularly where realistic portraits are concerned. Not everyone will warm to her fairly cold, analytical, draftsman-like style, though. Despite those strengths, there are too many flaws in this book to make it a first recommendation: * There's not enough info on materials and tools. * The drawing reproductions are mostly way too small to learn from. They're fine for inspiration (or intimidation!) but won't much help you emulate the author's technique. * The main focus is on the author's speciality of portraiture. You'll find some really interesting info there, but it would have been nice to see equal attention paid to landscapes, animals, still lifes, comic book and cartoon art, etc. As it is, they're totally ignored or covered so briefly as to be of little use. * Instructions are vague. The author does some great texture and shading work with cross-hatching but never adequately describes _specifically_ how to do it for the different types of exercises and drawings. Why not tell us what pencil you're using when, why you choose certain stroke directions and lengths, etc.? * The author totally ignores blending in favor of cross-hatching for shading. You can do great work with either technique, so why pretend one widely used method doesn't exist? Blending is particularly important for super-realistic renderings and portraits. Almost without exception, the very best pencil portraits I've seen have been created with blending. Don't get me wrong: this isn't a bad book, just not all it could be. Hopefully a second edition will get it all right.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Art Course in one book,
By A Customer
This review is from: Drawing For Dummies (Paperback)
This is the best book on drawing I have ever seen. I was searching for an art book to help with some aspects of drawing I was having trouble with. This book went far beyond that. It is like an art course in one book. There are many other good art books out there which do the same thing, but the book is laid out in the familiar Dummies style, which is easy to read, and great to use as a reference book. The book includes all facets of drawing: line drawing, light and shadows, patterns and textures, perspective, elements of composition, drawing still lifes, plants, animals, landscapes, people (including babies), cartooning, as well as information about setting up your own studio, developing your own drawing style, crossing over from drawing to painting, as well as other information helpful to artists. The author's style is very entertaining, and she encourages anyone to try drawing. There are tons of pictures throughout the whole book, as well as about thirty projects to try. Whether this is your first attempt at drawing, or an experienced artist, this book is an excellent choice for any artist.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Drawing for Dummies,
By
This review is from: Drawing For Dummies (Paperback)
What an excellent book ! Purchased two books; one for a gift and one for myself after reviewing how well the book is organized and written.The author, Brenda Hoddinott, has taken such effort to develop a truly wonderful reference book. She opens the door to creativity and makes it seem so achievable. Must have been an excellent educator as she empowers the reader to grab the reins and draw. Every chapter leads the reader through an interesting exercise from the basics to the illusion of three dimension.
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