Imaginative Realism
James Gurney
Andrews McMeel Publishing
Nonfiction, Art
***** (Great)
DESCRIPTION: Professional artist James Gurney is perhaps best known for his imaginative illustrated Dinotopia series, where he convincingly blends humans and prehistoric animals in a variety of settings. Here, he explains how to use real-world inspirations, hand-crafted maquettes, and other props to create realistic visions of the impossible.
REVIEW: I love Gurney's works. The original Dinotopia is one of my favorite sense-of-wonder experiences. Seeing how he pulls it off only makes me appreciate his work all the more. Gurney doesn't walk readers step by step through paintings, nor does he spend pages on anatomy and perspective and other things covered in so many other art books. His focus is just what the title says: painting what doesn't exist in as realistic a manner as possible. He uses models built out of clay, paper, and other materials to study lighting and composition. He uses live models in costume. He uses plein air studies and heaps of reference files, and he takes the time to answer all the big questions about composition and such before paint touches canvas. All the time spent on this background work shows in all of his paintings. This book may not be for rank beginners, but it's an inspiring read for anyone who wants to create beautiful imaginative art or simply wants to understand how people like Gurney pull off the impossible. This is yet another art book that makes me wish I had a decent workspace. And a budget. Oh, yeah - and an iota of talent with a paintbrush.
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