Learn dynamic sketching and watercolor techniques for creating cityscapes, landscapes, figures and faces, still lifes, and more, enhancing the story you want to tell with form, line, and color.Discover incredible methods and tips for creating dramatic street scenes and vivid landscapes, and capturing dynamic figures and graphic architectural details. Artist Alex Hillkurtz-a top Hollywood storyboard artist, international workshop instructor, and Signature Member of the National Watercolor Society-presents fundamental concepts of sketching with pencil and pen for a number of popular genres. Discover simple ways to jot down spontaneous ideas in pencil, capture rough details in ink, and add watercolor for extra depth and interest.Make sketching more enjoyable by adopting innovative techniques that will make a difference in your practice, and your artwork. No matter your experience or skill level, you'll benefit from learning: Compositions that draw the eye How to avoid common sketching mistakes Ways to create light and shadow to define shapes and add interest Successful ways to use negative space The importance of perspective in creating depth Easy color washes that create drama Get started today, and fill your sketchbooks with unique drawings and paintings you will be proud of.The For Artists series expertly guides and instructs artists at all skill levels who want to develop their classical drawing and painting skills and create realistic and representational art.

"Emphasizes the power of storytelling through drawings, with plentiful tips and suggestions on how to capture mood, energy and narrative."

Autorentext

Alex Hillkurtz was born in England and grew up in California, where he works as a renowned storyboard artist for feature films, television, and commercials. His film credits include Argo, Almost Famous, It’s Complicated, Vanilla Sky, and many others. He uses the language of cinema to inform his images, moving beyond what one sees, and depicting what he wants others to see.
 
Alex has taught sketching, plein air, and watercolor workshops in Germany, Russia, Italy, the Netherlands, France, the UK, and the US. His artwork, which has earned him Signature status in the National Watercolor Society as a Master artist, has been exhibited at L'Entrée des Artistes in Paris, Matite en Viaggio in Venice, and MiArs in Milan. He believes that in our too-crowded lives, sketching and plein air painting invite us to move at a more deliberate pace to discover a true sense of place, and in the process, unexpected stories are revealed. Alex currently lives in Paris with his film editor wife, Tiffany, and enjoys discovering the hidden corners of the city that sketching and plein air painting allow.

Zusammenfassung
Sketching Techniques for Artists is the modern guide for learning essential sketching and watercolor techniques for creating landscapes, cityscapes, architecture, figures and faces, still lifes, and more.

Inhalt

Introduction

1 MATERIALS AND TOOLS
A Personal Choice Pens, Pencils, and Inks
Paper and Sketchbooks
Brushes
Watercolor Paint
Miscellaneous Tools2 GENERAL SKETCHING TECHNIQUES
Using the Language of Film to Tell a Story
Selecting What to Sketch
Rendering Light in a Sketch
Details
3 COMPOSITION
Telling a Story
The Rule of Thirds
Contrast and Detail
Thumbnail Sketches
4 PERSPECTIVE
Basic Bones
Linear Perspective The Horizon Line
One-Point Perspective
Two-Point Perspective
Three-Point Perspective
Perspective on a Curved Street5 STILL LIFE
A Poem Made Visible
A New Way to See Objects
Rendering Light
Adding Color
Structure
Negative Space
6 LANDSCAPES
Landscape Composition
Sketching Landscapes and Line Weight
Atmospheric Perspective
7 ARCHITECTURE
An Overview of Basic Forms
Roofs
Doorways and Arches
Windows
Balconies
Awnings
Signs
Architecture as Character
8 FIGURES
The Basic Figure
Adding Volume
Capturing Gesture
Drawing Figures in Groups
Drawing the Head
9 WATERCOLOR
Dancing with Watercolor
Creating Multiple Effects with One Color
Creating Texture: Splatters, Splashes, and Scrapes
Color Mixing
Warm and Cool Colors
Painting with a Limited Palette
Stages of a Painting
The Color and Consistency of Shadows
Contre Jour

Conclusion: Keep Going
Resources
Influences
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Index