http://www.painters-online.co.uk artistDecember 2019 69
ART BOOKS
Reviewed by Henry MaltSome of the books reviewed here can be purchased by our UK readers at
discounted prices from our online bookshop: http://bit.ly/pobooksThe Pursuit of Art
Martin Gayford
Looking at the title, you might be
forgiven for thinking that this is a dry-
as-dust discussion of the process of
making and creating works of art, a book
for the academic and not the general
reader. Nothing could be further from
the truth. Martin Gayford is a perceptive
and informed critic who has been writing
about art for several decades and has an
encyclopaedic knowledge of his subject.
The pursuit of the title refers to journeys
he has made in search of works and
artists ranging from cave paintings
in Bergerac to the performance artist
Maria Abramović by way of Robert
Rauschenberg and Raphael’s tapestries
for the Sistine chapel. His thesis is that,
while seeing art in person is wildly
di erent to looking at a reproduction, the
e ort involved can add perspective too.
In other hands, this could be laboured,
but Gayford’s light touch makes it a
thumping good read.
Thames & Hudson £16.95,
192 pages (H/B) ISBN 9780500094112Botanical Illustration
from Life
Işik Güner
The regularity with which ower painting
books appear is a testament to their
popularity as well as the almost in nite
variety of ways in which they can be painted.
Do you want the impressionism that portrays
Wordsworth’s da odils, or the precise
but still informal ower portrait? Do your
thoughts perhaps turn to the rigid discipline
of botanical illustration? If the last, how
scienti c do you want to be?
You might well ask, ‘if not from life, how
else?’ and it’s a reasonable question. Botanical
portraits are supposed to represent a
species rather than a speci c example and a
photograph won’t give you that. Whatever
your quibble, this is an original approach
that teaches ways to capture detail in stems,
petals, leaves and fruit. It’s a thorough course,
with plenty of examples and demonstrations
and the amount of instruction you’d consider
necessary at this level. Clear and engaging,
it’s a delight.
Search Press £17.99, 208 pages (P/B)
ISBN 9781782218067
Colour-Pencil Drawing
Kendra Ferreira
Apart from a small urry of books a few
years ago, coloured pencils are one of
the neglected media, publication-wise.
Lightweight, compact and easy to carry,
they have considerable possibilities
and the broad range of types available
suggests a popularity that would be keen
to receive some guidance.
Against that background, almost any new
book would be welcome, so it is a relief
to be able to say that this thorough and
attractive introductory guide would stand
out even in the face of sti competition.
Although quite short, there is a good
variety of subject matter from still life
to landscapes, water, skies, people and
animals. All this inevitably means that the
book is largely a survey, but the discussion
of materials and techniques is thorough
and the quality of reproduction well up
to showing exactly how the images are
structured. All-in-all, this is a worthy look at
the subject.
GMC Publications £9.99, 96 pages (P/B)
ISBN 9781784945305Paint Pad Poster Book – Flowers
Search Press have supersized their Paint Pad series. These new books take the
form of an A3 pad with pull-out sheets of watercolour paper with the expected
pre-printed outlines. It’s also possible to pull out the instruction pages and pin
them up so that you’re not struggling with something unmanageable in the
studio. Such details are evidence of the thought that’s gone into the presentation.
Each book contains paper and instructions for ve images, which you’re
encouraged to frame and display after completion – and they’re so good you’d
want to. No authors are credited and the images themselves look familiar – I’m
pretty sure they’re taken from other books, but the presentation is completely
new. Consideration has also been given to the size – at this scale, imperfections
in the reproduction would be very clear and they’re fully up to standard on that
score. It’s an interesting development that has considerable potential.
Search Press £15.99, 40 pages (P/B). ISBN 9781782217558