Life Changing Book of the Day: Figure Drawing - For All It's Worth, by Andrew Loomis

An example of Andrew Loomis' work from one of his art instruction books.

My father Leo was an artist. He worked in advertising for the most part, both
as a graphic designer and photographer. I was fortunate to be brought
up surrounded by mechanical pencils, airbrushes, T-squares and circle
templates. We even had a working darkroom in the basement, complete
with an enlarger. What a lucky kid I was! My father's collection of art
books and magazines also created a lasting impression on me.

Of those books, there was one in particular that stands out in my
memory: Figure Drawing For All It's Worth, by Andrew Loomis. My father
was careful about not letting me look at it while I was a child, probably
because of the subject matter. I believe that just made it all the more
intriguing to me though. So one day after he had gone to work (or
maybe he was down in the basement taking pictures of silverware for a
catalog?) I couldn't resist taking that book off the shelf to see what the
big deal was about. Well,...yikes! Barely into my teens I have to admit to
it being kind of a big deal at the time.

However, after that intial shock wore off and I actually started reading the
text within instead of just gawking at the drawings, I came to realize what
an important resource this book could be in my development as an artist,
which is what I had decided I wanted to be.

The author, Andrew Loomis (born: William Andrew Loomis in 1892)
started his career as an illustrator and artist way back in the early part of
the 20th century, around 1915. He worked in Chicago practically his
entire life until his death in 1959. He had his own studio in the 1930's
and taught classes at the American Academy of Art. He came out with
several art instruction books, including "Fun With a Pencil" (1939). His
most popular by far though was "Figure Drawing For All It's Worth" which
came out in 1943.

Loomis made sure to write in a way that was simple and even humorous
at times. He never talked down his readers even while covering such
daunting subjects as perspective and the rendering of light and shadow
from different angles. He really made learning such subjects fun. It
made you feel as though you too could attain results like his.

His drawing style was highly realistic, almost photographic at times.
Simply using a graphite pencil, Loomis could produce a rendering of the
human form that looked as though it would come to life at any moment
and walk right off the page! He was an expert at using light and shadow
to his advantage in creating a very three dimensional likeness of the
human body.

I learned a lot from that book over the years, and I still think it is the best
book on the subject of figure drawing, hands down. Nothing even comes
close in my opinion. Everything is covered, from basic anatomy and
perspective, to how to best capture the shadows cast on your model as
it is lit in various ways. There are of course many books out there that
cover the same material, but one look at Loomis' work will be enough to
convince you that his book is the best.

Out of print for many years, I am happy to report that this past year I saw
a brand new copy of it for sale at my local bookstore, and it is available
online of course. I encourage anyone with any interest at all in drawing or
painting the human form to at least take a look at this book. Compare it
to the other books on figure drawing that are available, and you'll see
how far ahead Loomis was (and is) on the subject. Especially for those
who are considering a career in comics, drawing life like characters...
this book will become an often used reference. You will learn so much
from it.

Life Changing Book of the Day: An Illustrated Life by Danny Gregory

There are many art books that fill my shelves. Some purchased years ago, others more recent. Some of those books I've read once and placed back upon the shelf, never to be opened again. They serve little purpose other than to collect dust. But then there are those few volumes that I refer to almost daily. Usually, they sit on a table in plain view rather than up on a shelf. That's because I know I'll be thumbing through its pages again soon; most likely that very day. Those are the books that serve as a source of constant inspiration to me. Every page turned reveals something new each and every time. I can honestly say: This is a book I love.

"An Illustrated Life" by Danny Gregory is just such a book. Within its pages lies a collection of artworks, (drawings mostly) reproduced from the pages of artists private sketchbooks. Some of these artists have enjoyed years of training at universities, while others like myself are completely self taught. Some keep sketchbooks as part of their work, and some sketch simply for the pleasure it offers. There are even those who reveal the practice to be a daily compulsion that they have little control over. They must, in fact record every minute detail of where they are, who is around, and what they are doing. Some of the artists in this collection use a pencil to record the world around them, some use a pen, others brush, paints or inks, and then there are those who use a combination of media. Every image within tells a story of some sort, and is a joy to behold. Intended or not, each piece of art inside reveals something about the artist as well.

There is such beauty to be found within the pages of this book, that one cannot take it all in simply by browsing through it in one sitting. Dense with drawn images, things can pop out at you that seem brand new even after months spent studying it. Not only is this book full of engaging artistry, it also contains the personal stories, memories, and advice of each artist. They even go to such lengths as to reveal to the reader what kinds of tools and equipment they use in creating their sketchbooks; what kinds of paper and pens for instance.

It may be a cliche, but really, words cannot do this book justice. However one may rave about it, one must really see it themselves in order to truly appreciate it. Whether you have ever kept a sketchbook or not, is not important. That's something that will have absolutley no bearing at all on your enjoyment of this book. However, if you've ever harboured a secret desire to keep a sketchbook, then you'll find loads of inspiration and advice within. In fact, I would be surprised if anyone, of any artistic level or inclination could come away from a single viewing of this lovely collection and not be inspired themselves to immediately put pen to paper and start documenting their lives in some way.

Paraphrashing the artist who brought this collection together in one volume: 'This is the book I've been searching for my whole life'. Because he never found it, he had to put it together himself. I'm so glad he did! Because with my my first flip through its pages, I immediately felt the exact same way: This is a book I've been searching for! It is highly recommended.

An Illustrated Life, by Danny Gregory

Scooter

Here is a drawing I did today of a scooter. I used a mechanical pencil and a variety of markers to create this rendering. I based it on a photo I took of a Vespa in Paris last September. I think everybody there owns a scooter!

Relief Print Portrait

Another self portrait, this time carved from a small slab of rubber using various tools including an X-Acto knife. The finished piece measures about 2 x 3 inches; just slightly bigger than your average business card.

A lot of work was involved in this, partially due to it's small size, and also due to the fact that instead of carving the lines making up my face, which would have been dead simple, I choose to carve out the rubber around each line! What a chore, especially on such a small scale. As you can imagine when carving anything: one false move and it's pretty much ruined.

Working from a recent photo of myself taken by a stranger in Pere Lachaise cemetery in Paris, I'm not quite sure if it counts as a self portrait...but since this carving is my interpretation of that photo, I'm going to call it a self portrait. In blue ink. So I can claim it to be from my 'blue period'!

Felt Face!

Here you can see the various stages involved as I created this colourful self portrait. The face, in particular the eyes were the hardest part to get right. I used a combination of embroidery and sewing thread, as well as craft felt (made from recycled soda bottles of course!) I'm really pleased with the way it came out.

Teapot

Well, technically not a teapot, just teapot shaped! You put a tea light candle in it, and it glows rather pleasingly. This is a drawing I did of it using a black fine line marker. Crosshatching too which I rarely do, but I like the way it came out, so I may do more work like this...

Telephone

I can remember when a telephone did only two things: made calls and received calls!

I was initially inspired to make this piece because of the colour scheme I had in mind. I wanted a red background, handpainted with a bit of texture, and I wanted to feature a black item drawn in ink. I actually own and use a telephone like this and had always wanted to draw it, so here was my opportunity.

A failure to find my little bottle of India ink lead me to break out the Sharpie markers again. I thought using the markers on manila folder stock would add a nice little contrast to the finished piece as well.

The completed work bares little resemblence to what I had in my head initially. Like always, the concept and artwork took on a life of it's own and I was just along for the ride. It was fun to work on though, and I really like the way it came out!