Revolutionize your work with acrylics!

Get ready for the creative ride of your life! Tradition is out, experimentation is in with this cutting-edge how-to sampler of techniques to use with acrylic, the world’s most versatile medium. Inside, you’ll find inventive, non-traditional, downright inspirational ways to paint with acrylic (pour, scrape, squirt, roll, layer and excavate).

Workshop style instruction covers a wide range of approaches:

Watermedia Effects * Creating Texture Gels * Subtractive Techniques * Collage and Acrylic Skins * Acrylic Transfers and the Printed Image * Pours * Acrylic Encaustic * Metallic and Reflective Paints * Drawing and Resists with Acrylic * Traditional Techniques with Acrylic * Varnishing

- 18 step-by-step demonstrations illustrate a wide variety of techniques including engraving acrylic, intarsia, pouring acrylic objects and more.

- Studio visits profile 10 artists and their personal approaches to painting with acrylics.

If you want to try something new...to put more play into your artwork...to test-drive some of those enticing products you’ve been eyeing...open this book and go for it. We’re not talking just about brush and canvas anymore...get out the hand-sander and Plexiglas, and hold on tight (or better yet, let loose!), because this adventure-in-acrylics will take you through a variety of possibilities. Delicate transparent washes, lively impasto surfaces, radical multi-dimensional effects... What will YOU think of next?

The nude has inspired artists for centuries and continues to inspire us today. Alongside a historical study of the nude in painting, this book introduces oil paint and gives advice on techniques when using this challenging and rewarding medium. Capturing the beauty of form and the delicate colours of the figure, it celebrates the powerful images that examine human relationships, personality and psychology. Some of the topics included in this book are instructions on materials, the colour palette and stretching your own canvas; the practicalities of working with a model in the studio; colour-mixing exercises that explore colour relationships and temperature, and finally step-by-step examples that demonstrate the progression of a painting.

British painter William Tillyer (born 1938) is regarded as one of the most accomplished and consistently inventive artists working in watercolor. His work luxuriates in translucent color and sensuous brushwork. Some of his pieces, in their untrammeled expressive zeal and readily apparent love of color as a pure quality call to mind the canvases of Morris Louis; in other paintings, flamboyantly voluptuous shapes confront geometric abstractions and Minimalist blocks of color. With 224 full-color images, "William Tillyer: Watercolours" provides a comprehensive look at the titular aspect of Tillyer's oeuvre, looking back over nearly 40 years of work. It includes three texts by the American poet and art historian John Yau, an essay describing the development of Tillyer's watercolors and linking his work to the tradition of the English watercolor, an essay on the latest body of work and an interview with the artist.

A new type of craft, braided wire jewelry does not require expensive equipment and can be made by almost anyone with easily found materials. Come and give it a try! Pretty, delicate-looking (but actually quite strong) jewelry, including pendants, pins, watchbands, and earrings, can be made from wires, beads and stones. Cute monkey, butterfly, and cross shapes are shown, and you are encouraged to design your own styles once you learn her techniques. Let your imagination go! Have fun being creative! Step-by-step instructions with color photographs and detail drawings guide you through the basic techniques and seven projects with various levels of difficulty.

The monochrome - a single colour of paint applied over the entirety of a canvas - remains one of the more contentious modernist artistic inventions. But whilst the manufacture of these 'pictures of nothing' was ostensibly straightforward, their subsequent theorisation has been anything but. More than a history, Monochrome: Darkness and Light in Contemporary Art is the first account of the monochrome's lively role in contemporary art. Liberated from the burden of representation, the monochrome first stood for emancipation: an ideological and artistic impulse that characterised the avant-garde of the early twentieth century. Historically, the monochrome embodied the most extreme form of abstraction and pure materiality. Yet more recently, adaptations of the art form have focused on a broader range of cultural and interpretive contexts. Provocative, innovative and timely, this book argues that the latest artistic strategies go beyond stylistic concerns and instead seek to re-engage with ideas around authorship, process and the conditions of the visible as they are given and understood through both light and darkness. Discussing works by artists such as Katie Paterson, Hiroshi Sugimoto, Tom Friedman, Bruno Jakob, Sherrie Levine and Ceal Floyer, the book shows that the debates around an artwork's form and its possibility for meaning that the monochrome first engendered remain very much alive in contemporary visual culture.

Veteran carver and instructor Al Streetman cleaned up his shop and came up with yet another hot book, this one presenting a thin cast of characters carved from leftover wood scraps. Streetman takes novice and advanced carvers alike through a step-by-step process of carving and painting these unique creations made from piles of narrow leftovers. The task is made simpler with 126 photos and more than 25 illustrations, including the cutout patterns for 20 unique figures, such as Santas, elves, and the featured pirate project. In addition to sharing Al's tips and secrets regarding head, hand, and body carving, this informative book provides detailed suggestions regarding carving tools, paintbrushes, and paint colors.

Classic approach to the dynamics of drawing by brilliant teacher with insights and practical advice on line drawing, mass drawing, visual memory, materials and much more. 84 plates and diagrams reinforce Speed's clear presentation.

A playful, quirky, doodly exploration of the humble pen, full of practical ways to make amazing art using markers, ink pens, quills and even ballpoints. A cute, quirky practical art book, Pick Up A Pen is a guide to making the most of pens, from creating perfect calligraphic script with pen and ink to making masterpieces with a Sharpie. It covers drawing techniques such as cross-hatching and scumbling that'll help you raise your sketchbook game, and is packed with ideas for what to draw and when. It introduces the world's greatest artists working in pen, and explores what your doodles say about you. On top of the arty bits, the book also contains nifty pen hacks and handwriting tips, and it delves into the history of the pen with some fascinating facts - did you know that an estimated 15 million biros are sold every day? Stuffed with tips, tricks and an enormous sense of fun, Pick Up A Pen will help you brandish a biro, perfect your pen and ink techniques and discover that markers really are magic! Word count: 30,000 words

Wander into the immersive illustrated universe of Beatrice Blue. Filled with playful characters, enchanting natural scenery, and captivating narratives, Beatrice's designs will appeal to everyone's inner child. Her fantastic use of vibrant color and luminous finishes give her imaginative scenes life and vigor, while her expressive texturing techniques embellish her already intricately detailed works further, to create designs with depth and integrity. Discover how Beatrice harmoniously manages her work and life schedule to stay inspired and keep producing fresh and engaging art. She also explains how she builds her stunning compositions and considers every integral detail to create balanced designs. Make sure to take note of the invaluable insights she has to share from her experiences working for industry leaders and find out how to develop designs with personality, in order to stand out from the crowd. This beautiful handheld hardback title is the perfect book to carry with you on all your exciting adventures, providing you with a portal to a colorful and deeply magical world.

Throughout history people have sought ways to mark their passing and to memorialize their loved ones' final resting places. In this book, Dale Power provides you with the tools and techniques to create long lasting, beautiful stone monuments and markers with a sandblaster. Step-by-step, with straight-forward explanations and color illustrations, Dale takes you thorugh the process from preparing the stone and sandblasting mask, through the sandblasting process itself, and finally to finishing touches that will make your monument stand out among the rest. The gallery is filled with fine examples of the sandblasting art-both old and new-to fire your creativity. Also provided are eleven designs to reproduce and ten typeface styles for easy monument and marker lettering.

This guide introduces aspiring manga artists to drawing chibi characters--wide-eyed caricatures beloved for their cartoonish exaggeration. Drawing Cute Manga Chibi walks you through the steps needed to draw these adorable characters, while sidebars offer expert tips, pointers on the pitfalls to avoid, and how to use details to bring your drawings to life. In this book, readers will learn how to imagine and express: Facial expressions Body posture Hairstyles Different ages Poses Bringing your characters into full-color Different character identities--from a punk rocker to a samurai Author and Japanese manga artist Ryusuke Hamamoto (Ryu Moto) is best known for his design and creation of the Petit Eva character--who even makes an appearance in this book! In Drawing Cute Manga Chibi, he shares his personal tips, showing you how to break the "rules" of figure drawing in order to create these bobbleheaded cuties. Artists of all ages and levels will have fun creating original characters or reimagining their friends and family as kawaii chibi drawings.

A good sketch starts with good bones. Often challenging and overwhelming to sketchers, the fourth book in the Urban Sketching Handbook series uses drawings and simple steps to explain the concepts of perspective in practical and useful ways for on-site sketching. Most books are either too abstract or don't provide enough information that relates to what you actually do when you're out in the busy, wide world about to start a drawing. Where do you start? How do you edit what you see to flatten and shrink it onto your paper? How does perspective work? The Urban Sketching Handbook: Understanding Perspective helps you learn to think like an architect, to draw buildings and spaces by reducing what you see to simple, basic shapes, then adding layers in simple steps, and finally finishing your sketch with detail, tone, and color--in accurate perspective. Full of helpful tips, architect and illustrator, Stephanie Bower even de-constructs sketches to show you how to create them! Once you understand perspective, it will change the way you see the world--you'll see perspective everywhere. Some of the key concepts explored in this volume are: * Basic Terms * Basic Spatial Principles * Types of Perspective * Building a Sketch in Layers * Special Conditions

Stan Lee, the Mighty Man from Marvel, and John Buscema, active and adventuresome artist behind the Silver Surfer, Conan the Barbarian, the Mighty Thor and Spider-Man, have collaborated on this comics compendium: an encyclopedia of information for creating your own superhero comic strips. Using artwork from Marvel comics as primary examples, Buscema graphically illustrates the hitherto mysterious methods of comic art. Stan Lee's pithy prose gives able assistance and advice to the apprentice artist. Bursting with Buscema's magnificent illustrations and Lee's laudable word-magic, How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way belongs in the library of every kid who has ever wanted to illustrate his or her own comic strip.

Master the challenges of drawing on location with this collection of insider know-how and expert tips and techniques. Illustrator, architect, and international workshop instructor and Urban Sketcher Stephanie Bower has collected 101 of her best insider drawing tips, hacks, and techniques and shares them in this fully illustrated, portable book. Learn shortcuts to getting your perspective right, determining your composition, and balancing your light and shadow. This book collects many basic drawing techniques into one handy volume: How to draw a great line Using ellipses to draw arches How towers are like wedding cakes The importance of your eye level line in sketching and 97 things more! The book also features beautiful example illustrations from Urban Sketchers around the globe! Whether you are new to sketching or are an experienced artist, this book is chock-full of useful, practical, and clever tips to take your drawing to the next level. The Urban Sketching Handbook series offers location artists expert instruction on creative techniques, on-location tips and advice, and an abundance of visual inspiration. These handy references come in a compact, easy-to-carry format-perfect to toss in your backpack or artist's tote.

This book awaited artist's manual is the first definitive sourcebook of its kind. In it, William Veasey teaches decorative decoy artists to accurately paint the details of waterfowl and gamebird bills and feet, as well as those of birds of prey. Bills and Feet is an authoritative work which will allow the craftsman to achieve a more lifelike effect with his carvings. Illustrated in full color, it is a must for the serious decoy artist.

An exciting new approach to flower painting with step-by-step demonstrations for creating contemporary flower portraits and landscapes that are truly unique.This is more than a 'how-to' on flower painting. It is a guide encouraging artists to explore new and exciting ways to create flower paintings bursting with individuality and moving towards a contemporary and impressionist style.Mixed-media artist Soraya French, well known for her gloriously vibrant flower paintings, shares the secrets of her work, with expert advice on all aspects of this endlessly rewarding subject. The book covers: *Colours, shapes, patterns and textures particular to various flowers through the seasons, from fresh green foliage in the spring to rich red and gold hues in the autumn. *How to incorporate flowers in both still life and landscape paintings, pictured in woodlands, seascapes, meadows and hedgerows as well as vases. *How to assemble the perfect palette for flower painting and how to mix vibrant secondary colours, subtle tints and natural greens. *The huge range of painting materials available today, from traditional watercolour to vividly coloured wax pastels to innovative textural mediums such as crackle paste and glass bead gel. *The secrets of good composition and how to lead the eye around a painting, giving a sense of rhythm and movement while maintaining unity and harmony.Packed with exciting new ideas and illustrated with stunning examples of Soraya's own work, this book will take your flower painting to a new level and help you find your unique visual voice.

Anatomy for Artists is an extensive compendium of high quality, detailed photography and drawings, showing the human figure in a variety of shapes, sizes and poses that can be used as a solid foundation for all character art.This thorough and detailed library of visual resources will consist of stunning photography and comprehensive drawings showing the muscular structure of figures of varying body types. These male and female references will act as an invaluable starting point for artists trying to create art based on the human figure. Whether you're a traditional sculptor, oil painter or 3D digital artist, the resources within this book will prove to be useful and informative and will help you improve the quality and accuracy of your own art.

From soft pencils to graphite powder, ballpoint to fibre-tip pens, conte sticks to watercolour pencils, this unique guide covers everything you need to know to begin mastering and combining different media in your drawing. This visual directory of drawing techniques beyond the pencil provides you with the skills to explore and experiment with all the different techniques and mediums. Use it as a handy reference for when you want to know how to use a particular tool, or as a catalogue of inspiration when seeking new ideas to try. A wealth of media and equipment is demonstrated, and each page features invaluable information for beginners and accomplished artists alike. As the techniques progress, you'll explore the creative possibilities beyond one medium, and be encouraged to look at your work and style in a new light. Use the examples shown to aid expression and skill development and to look at the myriad possibilities of mixed media, which have all been selected because of their compatibility. Start with basic graphite pencils, sticks and powder to explore line and tone, shading, creating textures and erasing. Then move on to coloured pencils to cover techniques such as burnishing, lifting and sgraffito. There are various interesting methods to try with water-soluble coloured pencils too, including different ways of applying water, blending and overlaying colours. Explore the effects that you can create with charcoal or conte sticks on different coloured and textured papers, and discover how to use pastel pencils and chalks for expressive drawing. Then master blending, shading and scumbling with hard and soft pastels, and perfect your techniques with crayons, oil pastels and oil paint sticks. There are some really interesting ways to use ink pens for painting effects and instructions are included for cutting your own quill pen. Ballpoint pens, fibre-tips, marker pens and brush pens are also great tools for creating modern, graphic drawings - pick up some handy tips for mark making and blending. Finally, experiment with mixed media and combining various pencils, pastels, crayons, powder, sticks and pens for some stunning results. Be inspired by the huge range of drawings in this book to expand and develop your own skills.

Turn the pages of this lavishly-produced book to discover a collection of monsters, creatures, and characters created by self-taught concept artist Francisco Garces, AKA Dibujante Nocturno. The artist and illustrator shares his journey, revealing how his self-taught skills have evolved over the years, resulting in the demonic yet exquisite style that has earned him over 400,000 followers on Instagram. In addition to a specially curated gallery of his past work, there are new pieces created exclusively for this book, including step-by-step tutorials that break down not only the artist's workflow and routine, but also his intricate pen linework techniques, cleverly chosen color palettes, and detailed rendering. Being self-taught, the artist has honed his skills in a completely unique way, allowing readers to glean not only unique tips and techniques, but also inspiration and insight into how they can practise, improve, and develop their own style. His experience of teaching art ensures he knows how to effectively communicate ideas, concepts and practical techniques. From his elegantly drawn linework to the darkest character creation, this is a unique opportunity for fans of fantasy art and creature design to see what goes into the epic art of Dibujante Nocturno.

Draw the best portraits with form and spirit. Drawing techniques from a master! Mau-Kun Yim learned to draw as the Old Masters did and believes that to render the essence of life in portrait drawing, one must continue to pursue the old ways. This philosophy and methodology relies on a holistic approach to observation, analysis and critical-thinking honed through time and patience. Start with a solid foundation - Classical bust drawing is a must. These lessons aid in constructing volume in your drawing and introduce concepts of structure. Move on to sketching - The best way to train your observation skills. Anatomy, value and state of mind are the focus of these lessons. 12 step-by-step tutorials put it all together - Form and spirit combine along with more clearly defined details to bring life and dimension to your portraits. An extensive gallery of beautifully and classically executed portraits, figures, sketches and busts serves as inspiration.

*** 'Figure Drawing is structured like an art school course and is every bit as rewarding.' Artists and Illustrators Informative and instructive, this comprehensive guide will give you all the tools you need to draw the human figure, from life and from a screen. While many books focus on just one aspect of figure drawing, this manual unites the skills of observation, expression and understanding in one coherent approach. Beginning with the key principles of observation, Figure Drawing will help you to build a strong foundation of skills to make well-observed, proportionally accurate drawings. As the book progresses you will explore processes and exercises that move beyond the purely observed to express the gesture, form and substance of your model. Photographic and illustrative examples throughout the book support your learning at every step. Clear step-by-step tutorials provide a practical understanding of the key materials, skills and ideas in figure drawing. A comprehensive anatomical reference section, broken down into manageable zones, deepens your knowledge of the human form. The book is a Swiss-bound paperback, designed to lie flat when open and in use.

This book is available as open access through the Bloomsbury Open Access programme and is available on www.bloomsburycollections.com. Over the past half century, computing has profoundly altered the ways stories are imagined and told. Immersive, narrative, and database technologies transform creative practices and hybrid spaces revealing and concealing the most fundamental acts of human invention: making stories. The Digital Imaginary illuminates these changes by bringing leading North American and European writers, artists and scholars, like Sharon Daniel, Stuart Moulthrop, Nick Montfort, Kate Pullinger and Geof Bowker, to engage in discussion about how new forms and structures change the creative process. Through interviews, commentaries and meta-commentaries, this book brings fresh insight into the creative process from differing, disciplinary perspectives, provoking questions for makers and readers about meaning, interpretation and utterance. The Digital Imaginary will be an indispensable volume for anyone seeking to understand the impact of digital technology on contemporary culture, including storymakers, educators, curators, critics, readers and artists, alike.

This extraordinary seven-part book covers the processes of creating 13 projects -- from pencils to vases to bicycles -- for all personalities, skill levels and interests. It is specifically designed for students, beginning welders, hobbyists, and do-it-yourselfers. Many of the plans have been built multiple times by students and others. The plans are easy to read and the projects are meant to motivate the reader to want to learn the welding and fabrication processes. All plans include a list of materials, dimensions, special notes as needed., plus any commentaries about special equipment that might be necessary to compete the projects.Kristi Richardson McCoy is a self-taught welding instructor, with over 16 years of teaching and studying the welding process. Each year she has striven to learn something new about the field, weather it is the certification process, finishes and paints, or trying something new like underwater welding. She earned certification in SMAW and GMAW. Having an art background has helped her develop a creative teaching style that holds the interests of students who might otherwise be intimidated by the welding environment. McCoy teaches Computer-Aided Drafting, Electronics, Woodworking, Basic Welding, Advanced Welding,and Welding Sculpture at Spearfish High School in south Dakota. Part 1: Beginning Gas Metal Arc Welding. Part 2: Beginning Shielded Metal Arc Welding Projects. Part 3: Gas Welding Projects. Part 4: Beginning Gas Tungsten Arc Welding. Part 5: Bending Wrought Iron Projects. Part 6: Metal & Wood