During a visit to Half Price Books, my husband, David, stumbled across this book, The Fundamentals of Drawing: A complete professional course for artists, by Barrington Barber. I am not known for my skill in drawing, but both my husband and one of the twins are quite good.
We checked out, having not picked up the book, but finding several antique books (score!). David felt strongly enough about it that we went back for it, after getting in thecar to leave. So we took it home to our artistically inclined boy, and started looking through it.
When it says it is a complete course, it really is.
We decided to use it for an art course for both of the boys this year, and you know what? It’s worth the time. The explanations clearly written, and thoroughly covered, so you feel as though you have a teacher in your very room with you.
The information from the publisher says that it includes over 350 illustrations, and it covers everything from basic shapes and finding the light source for proper shading, to how to shade and even drawing people and complete scenes later on. The Fundamentals of Drawing is a self-guided course and can take you, one lesson at a time, from no knowledge or skill in drawing (like me!) to a solid understanding of drawing. It includes lessons on how to get proportions correct, different types tools, artistic composition, and more advanced techniques.
For about $14 on Amazon, this is an art book worth purchasing if you or your child has even a passing interest in art. https://amzn.to/2N03Ji9
Learning Tangent is Gail’s brainchild. When it all goes down, she has to get the magazine out the door and on its way to subscribers. She has four kids, of whom she and her husband David homeschool two. She enjoys a wide range of activities including weaving, photography, writing, is a musician (both a teacher & performer), calligrapher, and is an avid sci-fi- & fantasy reader. You’ll generally find her busy doing whatever it is she wants to on a given day.
