As part of our weekly art lessons and daily sketching practice, I've been investigating good instructional books on sketching. Since Sparrow mentioned carving out time and actually scheduling her sketch time, I thought I'd list a few of my favorite books on the subject. These books also meet with the approval of our art instructor:Sweetheart with Art Teacher Mr. Del
Keeping a Nature Journal: Discovre a Whole New Way of Seeing the World Around You by Clare Walker Leslie and Charles E. Roth. This is a wonderful book that specifically discusses the merits of nature drawing. It was the work that first inspired me to begin sketching simply because it extols the benefits of sketching in order to begin to really see what you're observing. Unlike photography, taking a sketch intimates you with your subject and reveals things you'd might otherwise have missed.
Drawing Nature by Stanley Maltzman. This one covers what the aforementioned book doesn't, which is the actual technical aspect of sketching natural objects. Once I began looking at Maltzman's book, I could see more clearly how a tree was put together in order to sketch it more accurately. From the book:
"Through the years, students have asked what inspired me to paint a certain picture, or what kind of pencil I use for drawing. My answer is, "It is a thousand-hour pencil." In other words, the secret is not in the pencil....it is the work, the devotion and the love of drawing."
The Complete Sketching Book by John Hamilton. What I love about this book is that the author stresses drawing simple, everyday objects that you can find right in front of you, just for the practice of sketching them. From the book:
"Hardly a day goes by without some visitor to my studio saying, 'I do wish I could draw, you know I did try once, but I was no good at it.' This is sad because I don't think it is true. What they are saying is that they started off by attempting something that was too difficult, failed in the attempt and gave up hope...Accept the fact that you are just beginning, and just as with anything you do in life, you have to develop your skill by stages. You learn to drive or you learn to cook and now you can learn to draw. You didn't make a souffle' as the first dish you cooked and you didn't drive in the fast lane of a motorway after your first driving lesson-- so don't expect to produce a masterpiece at the first attempt at sketching."
Another book I'm enjoying and which practically parallels the art classes we're taking is Jill Bays Drawing Workbook; A Complete Course in Ten Lessons. This book discusses the nuts and bolts of sketching, from contour drawing to negative spaces. It's simple to follow and offers many illustrations for the lessons. This was the first book I used that really inspired Monet to pursue art as a hobby.
Finally, for sheer inspiration, there is The Art of Tasha Tudor by Harry Davis. I love Tudor's drawings, the simple, bucolic subjects and the sweet borders she runs around each piece. Any book that you can pick up about her life is inspiring, and if you go to her website, you can purchase signed pieces and books.
I tried to scan some of our recent sketches, but, alas, my brand-new-got-it-for-my-birthday printer refuses to associate itself with my computer. I simply don't have the time or the patience to figure out what's wrong, but I hope Bo will be able to identify the problem so I can more easily upload photos and scan in the kids' works.
Do you have any favorite artists? Books about art? Please share them. The books I have listed here are from my local library, so if you have titles you'd like to share, I'll order them from my library, too!
