A practical guide to learn painting individual people and crowds, with simple exercises and step-by-step demonstrations. Bestselling artist and writer Hazel Soan has distilled her art teaching into the things that matter most and can be digested in a short period of time. Learning to paint is one of the life-long aspirations of many of us and the techniques of painting lively crowd scenes or portraits of loved ones can be picked up faster than you think. In this concise book, Hazel Soan explains everything you need to know about figurative painting in an accessible way. She advises on how to paint people in a variety of poses and settings, dealing with the theories of colour and light in a way that beginners will understand and more experienced painters will find invaluable. She also guides you through ways to insert people into your pre-existing painting to bring them to life; scenes like urban streets and on the beach are explored. Subjects like how to paint portraits and getting to grips with body proportion and perspective are also covered. Both media of watercolours and oils are covered, making this the perfect book for any type of artist. Filled with easy-to-follow exercises and demonstrations, this is a practical and helpful guide to learning to paint people very quickly.

Bestselling artist and writer Hazel Soan delivers a concise and approachable guide to portrait painting, with simple exercises and step-by-step demonstrations. Whether you are using watercolour, oils or acrylic, Learn to Paint Portraits Quickly explains the key elements of catching a likeness in portrait painting in a mixture of mediums. The book is filled with easy-to-follow instructions and step-by-step exercises that can be digested in a short period of time, and written in an accessible way for all artists to learn about portraiture. The key elements of portraiture covered in this concise book include: Finding the likeness Creating form – the light and shade The facial features Painting the hair Skin tone and colouring The body, clothing and background Illustrated with Hazel's magnificent, colourful paintings, and with practical advice and demonstrations throughout, this book is the perfect tool to help beginners master portrait painting – quickly.

Bestselling artist and author explains how to use light and shade in watercolour painting to add lifelike detail and create engaging artworks. Mastering light and shadow is the key to successful watercolour paintings and in this book you can learn how to paint like an expert. The book is packed with Hazel Soan's colourful and varied paintings, as well as step-by-step exercises and handy hints. Beginning with how to see the values of light and shade through the eyes of an artist, the book then shows how watercolour is the perfect medium to represent light and shade. Learn how to balance light and shade through compositional design and how to establish the shadow of individual components within the composition. Hazel demonstrates clever techniques such as conserving white paper to show highlights, how to mix the right tonal values and how to balance detail in your painting. Finally, the book looks at using light and shade to create atmospheric effects, tonal patterns to look out for and how to bring it all together to create fantastic artworks.

Bold Exciting Powerful A new level of artistic expression! Every artist strives to achieve the kind of painting that commands attention from across the room and delights the eye up close. In this book, artist and workshop teacher Patti Mollica walks you through surprisingly simple and efficient strategies for achieving that kind of powerful composition, whatever your subject. Complete with timed exercises and start-to-finish painting demonstrations, this book is for any artist who feels overwhelmed by where to start or daunted by the urge to paint everything in sight. Patti Mollica's mindful approach will lead you to better, bolder results, as well as greater confidence and joy in the process. So load your palette with ample paint, grab some fat brushes and get ready to paint fast, paint loose, paint bold. • Start with a strong, simple value statement • Get expressive with color • Be brave with your brushwork • 5 technique exercises • 5 start-to-finish painting demonstrations Paint fearlessly!

A paperback reissue Hazel Soan's classic practical art book. Hazel Soan is a well-known and popular artist and an enthusiastic and inspirational teacher. In The Essence of Watercolour Hazel shows how wonderfully versatile and beguiling the medium of watercolour is and how to get the most out of it. Hazel stresses how important it is to understand the characteristics of the medium in order to exploit it to the full. She encourages the reader to explore the properties of watercolour and to be unafraid of strength of colour and brushstroke. Hazel shows through demonstration and projects that tone is king in watercolour and illustrates how to paint light with the use of shade. Armed with this understanding she demonstrates that watercolour is not such an unforgiving medium after all: accidents and mistakes can be disguised, overridden and corrected. The Essence of Watercolour is a culmination of many years of Hazel's teaching and demonstrating, in which she offers inspirational insights into the secrets of watercolour painting and encourages artists to take their art to the next level.

Pick up your pencil, embrace your inner artist, and learn how to draw in thirty days with this approachable step-by-step guide from an Emmy award-winning PBS host. Drawing is an acquired skill, not a talent -- anyone can learn to draw! All you need is a pencil, a piece of paper, and the willingness to tap into your hidden artistic abilities. With Emmy award-winning, longtime PBS host Mark Kistler as your guide, you'll learn the secrets of sophisticated three-dimensional renderings, and have fun along the way -- in just twenty minutes a day for a month. Inside you'll find: Quick and easy step-by-step instructions for drawing everything from simple spheres to apples, trees, buildings, and the human hand and face More than 500 line drawings, illustrating each step Time-tested tips, techniques, and tutorials for drawing in 3-D The 9 Fundamental Laws of Drawing to create the illusion of depth in any drawing 75 student examples to encourage you in the process

A fun and accessible guide to painting flowers in watercolour with step-by-step exercises. World-renowned artist Trevor Waugh reveals the secrets of painting flowers in watercolour in this fun, easy-to-follow book. Focusing on the techniques that matter the most, you'll be able to start producing better flower paintings in the space of an afternoon. The book includes expert guidance on all aspects of flower painting in watercolour, including the basic shapes and how to combine them, how to design the perfect composition and how to create subtle and evocative effects. The author shares tips on how to use colour to create realistic-looking flowers and foliage, his go-to basic palette and details on how to create beautiful, nuanced colour mixes. There is also a section on how to achieve real artistry in your work, using hard and soft edges, clever observation and different angles to perfect your work. Armed with this beautiful book, packed with breathtaking inspirational paintings and a selection of helpful step-by-step demonstration sequences, you'll become an expert flower painting in no time at all.