How to Draw What You See (Practical Art Books)

How to Draw What You See (Practical Art Books)

 by Rudy De Reyna
(based on 28 customer reviews)

How to Draw What You See (Practical Art Books) (Paperback)
Edition: 35th Anniversary edition
Author: Rudy De Reyna
Publisher: Watson-Guptill


List Price: $17.95
Amazon's Price: $12.21
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Most useful review as voted by customers:
139 out of 141 people found the following review helpful.
Review Date: 11/30/00


The book every beginner should read first

I'm a beginner. I jumped into pastels and immediately realized that you have to draw before you can paint. I bought a dozen books on painting and drawing, and this is by far the best choice I made.

The text is straightforward. The exercises are simple. And the book builds your skills from the ground up. You start by learning to draw a straight line freehand and finish drawing compositions and portraits.

This book won't make you an artist. But, I don't know how I could ever become one without these skills.

78 out of 80 people found the following review helpful.
Review Date: 4/28/04


A good reference, and overall view of drawing, thorough and credible: 35th Anniversary Edition

"How to draw what you see" by Rudy De Reyna

I think many students of drawing look for a single book that covers just about the entire scope of drawing. This book is that kind of book. Most books that claim to be a "COMPLETE DRAWING COURSE" do not deliver on the boast. This book makes no boast, but it is the most COMPLETE book giving an overview of all aspects of drawing. This book is very good. It's as close to COMPLETE as you can get.

This book is now into its 35th Anniversary Edition printing, and is one of the longest selling books on the market. It is one of the best general references on TECHNIQUES & MATERIALS.

The figure drawing section is well developed and good for the beginner. The book covers Still Life, Landscape, Perspective and Composition, Lighting, and Materials and various strokes/charcoal, pencil, etc.

The foundation of the methodology in this book is its use of geometrical shapes (cones, cubes, triangles), reminiscent of Luca Cambiosa in the 16th Century. So the author is invested in what is called "the CLASSICAL TRADITION".

The book moves on to more advanced drawing/painting with Wash, Opaque, Acrylics and Ink. It's a good buy at this price, and a welcome addition to the artists shelf. [But if you're into Figure Drawing, also see books by Jack Hamm, and also ***"ART OF DRAWING THE HUMAN BODY"*** by Edgar Loy Fankbonner, "Art of Drawing" -Willy Pogany, "How to Draw The Human Figure" -Famous Artists School, and "The Figure" -Walt Reed] Any of these figure drawing books, combined with "HOW TO DRAW WHAT YOU SEE" makes for an excellent combination in the home library.

40 out of 41 people found the following review helpful.
Review Date: 11/23/99


This is a GREAT Book

This book was written with me in mind. I am a begininng amature artist who wanted to learn more about drawing. The instructions in this book took me from drawing basic shapes, though shading to sketching full compositions. It even goes beyond drawining to introducing acrlics and washes. Even the simplist procedure is gone over in detail so I never felt lost on how I was to get from one set to the next. Don't be fooled by the price. This is a complete refrence book that I use more then other books that have cost three times more.

33 out of 33 people found the following review helpful.
Review Date: 10/2/05


Wonderful book for both beginner & expert

I'm an instructor for digital art online and find this book to be a MUST for ANY artist. It has lots of illustrations and simple, well-written explanations! I would recommend it to any of my students who want to know theory and application, from perspective to tones and shading. Everything is in black and white, so you can really see the tonal changes in the renderings.

27 out of 27 people found the following review helpful.
Review Date: 1/7/06


Very helpful book for serious beginners

The book provides excellent instructions to master the foundation for good drawing. I have a very competent and professionally successful instructor. He has pointed out to me the areas that I need to improve. The book has become my 'in-home instructor' now. I needed to work on my perspective(mostly for objects above eye level), tonal values (light and shadow, reflections within and transitions) and translating the local color to black and white(the author has done a great job explaining this). After completing just one exercise, I could see significant improvement in my drawing. I highly recommend the book.

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