Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this book, free of charge,from Penguin Random House, for review purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it, all opinions are my own.
I hope you caught Christopher's Guest Post, earlier this morning!
Here is my review of his book, as promised!
Subtitled, How Anyone Can See the World Like an Artist—and Capture It on Paper,
this new book is a great way to have an at-home art course, especially for kids!
Synopsis:
Draw Like This! is a fully illustrated guide to drawing that will walk you through simple prompts and challenges, helping you learn to draw from the inside out. Topics include:
– Grid drawing
– 2-point perspective
– Negative space
– Op Art
– The human face and body
– Elements of design
– Shape, form, and line
– Color and texture
Engaging for beginners as well as veteran illustrators, and sure to appeal to kids, adults, teachers, and others, this is not your parents’ illustration guide. Get ready to love drawing!
Review:
I liked how Christopher starts kids with working on their CREATIVITY. It';s not about drawing lines, it;s about SEEING. And really that is half what art is about right? Seeing the potential in a block of wood, seeing the colors in the sky that you want to re-create on paper, seeing what the artist wants you to see. I love how he has kids start with inkblots. Decide what they are, and then write a short story about what you came up with. Talk about a GREAT way to challenge the imagination, and create a cross-curriculum moment (something homeschool moms all adore!)
Once symbolism and grid drawing is completed, he switches to teaching the elements of design. His methodology is one reason I put this book under Thursday, which is usually History Corner day- this was they way my art instructors taught too! The book allows you to draw in it, providing available space for the different lessons, making it very much a take and go book! This would be great for kids to do while killing time in a car, or before/after practice sessions!
Once you understand space and shading, THEN he starts you on color. Which is awesome. Kids who are so used to computer generated color, need to see in black and white, to realize what options color gives them. and continuing his methodology, he starts with simple humans. More cartoon in nature, but EASY to learn to draw. Then he takes on skeleton structure before getting to the hard stuff, like proportions, muscles, form. You know, the HARD stuff. But Christopher breaks it down where it seems like you CAN do it!
Surprisngly perspective comes after form. Most teachers teach it in the beginning, but I can see why Christopher bring it after form, as it can be harder to truly achieve overall in a picture, but he shows you the technique and it works. Kids especially will love the final sections on mazes and lettering, as those are ones they will use a lot, once learned.
This is a fun book for kids and adults, but I think teens and coeds will enjoy it a bit more, as they can pick it up when they have 10 minutes and de-stress while learning. But older elementary kids will like how easy the lessons are as well. We highly recommend it as a great holiday gift idea.
About the Author:
Christopher Locke is an illustrator and teacher based in Austin, Texas whose art – especially his welding work – has been featured in Details, Reason, The Week, PC World, Travel + Leisure and elsewhere. His work can be found on http://www.heartlessmachine.
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