Tuesday, October 4, 2011

The Weatherly Guide to Drawing Animals (Joe Weatherly)

The Weatherly Guide to Drawing Animals
Joe Weatherly
Joe Weatherly, publisher
Nonfiction, Art
****+ (Good/Great)


DESCRIPTION: Emphasizing gesture, motion, and rhythm, noted artist Joe Weatherly presents a guide to drawing animals.

REVIEW: I've seen this one recommended often, so I figured I'd give it a try. An inspiring, easy-to-follow book, it stresses the life and motion of the drawing over strict technical detail, focusing on overall forms, proportion, and general flow to give the finished work a lively dynamic. After a general overview of his approach, he highlights many animals directly, including nice sections on felines and canines, plus a variety of other animals from around the world. Unlike Jack Hamm's book on the subject, images outweigh text heavily. The writing could've used a keener-eyed editor; I saw a few irritating errors, including at least one misused word. Other than that, for a self- published book, it's very professional. Like all art books, this alone won't transform you into a great artist, but it offers a great deal of information for anyone who wants to learn.

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