Books, e-Books, Essays and Publications

Charles Bargue and J. L. Gérôme, Drawing Course. 
Edited by noted art historian, author and lecturer, Dr. Gerald M. Ackerman, and painter Graydon Parrish. “A complete reprint of the fabled but rare ‘Cours de Dessin‘ originally published by Goupil & Cie, Paris in the 1860’s and 1870’s.  For fifty years, this set of nearly 200 masterful lithographs was copied by art students worldwide before they attempted to draw from a live model.” 324 pages, 336 illustrations in color and bi-chrome.  Available in hardback (Gelitex), and softcover.

The Practice and Science of Drawing by Harold Speed.
Highly Recommended.  Available in a softcover reprint through A Stroke of Genius Fine Art Books. An unabridged reprint of the 1917 edition. Other editions available: Hardcover and CD.  “Classic approach to the dynamics of drawing by a brilliant teacher with insights and practical advice on line drawing, mass drawing, visual memory, cast drawing, materials and more.”

Project Gutenberg’s electronic edition of The Practice and Science of Drawing by Harold Speed. Note: This book is pure gold and free to download and print. Original 93 Illustrations & Diagrams, Published 1913.

Oil Painting Techniques and Materials by Harold Speed
Highly recommended. “Stimulating, informative guide by noted teacher covers painting technique, painting from life, materials (paints, varnishes, oils and mediums, grounds, etc.), a painter’s training, and more. Expert analysis of work of Velasquez, Reynolds, Gainsborough, Hals, Rembrandt, etc. 64 photos. 5 line drawings.”  This Dover Press edition is a reprint of the unabridged but “slightly altered” 1988 publication of a 1949 reprint.

Harold Speed’s book on oil painting was originally published in 1924 by Chapman & Hall Ltd, London, England under the title: The Practice and Science of Oil Painting.  Copies are still available through purveyors of old and collectible books at affordable prices.  At this writing, Biblio.comoffers 1924 first editions (unaltered), and 1949 editions. Originals are also available throughAbesbooks.com.

Note: Check Amazon.com for used copies, often available at significant savings.

Artistic Anatomy by Dr. Paul Richer translated by Robert Beverly Hale
Long recognized as a classic, this famous text treats the subject with both scientific accuracy and aesthetics.  Considered the most complete guide for achieving precise shape for the forms of the human body. 9″x12″, 256 pages, 150 anatomical drawings The original French edition was published in 1889. This English edition brings together the nineteenth century’s greatest teacher of artistic anatomy, Dr. Paul Richer, and the most famous twentieth century teacher of anatomy and figure drawing, Robert Beverly Hale, who translated and edited the book for the modern reader.  Available in Hardcover, ISBN: 0823002209. 

Anatomy Lessons from the Great Masters by Robert Beverly Hale and Terrence Coyle
100 great figure drawing analyzed. Available in paperback and hardcover. “This classic book, whose foremost author, Robert Beverly Hale, was one of the great artistic anatomy teachers of the twentieth century, is an invaluable instructor and reference guide for any professional, amateur, or student artist who depicts the human form.”

Videos: World Famous Lectures on Artistic Anatomy & Figure Drawing, presented by Robert Beverly Hale.
“In 1976, before he retired, Robert Beverly Hale’s entire Monday night series of lectures was videotaped in black and white in the order delivered at the Art Student’s League of New York. Future generations of artists and students will be able to benefit from the vast knowledge and penetrating insights of these famous lectures. Throughout the lectures, you see Mr. Hale demonstrating…the basic structure, proportions, anatomical details, function and renderings of the human figure, by way of the human skeleton and by his skillful step by step drawings.” 

Gustav’s Library Reprint: The Painter in Oil by Daniel Burleigh Parkhurst (1898) :
Highly Recommended. “The Painter In Oil” is available in softcover, reprinted from a first edition.  If you’ve been looking for an original, they are difficult to find.  Gustav’s Library reports that the cost of an original print is now upwards of $450.00.

ARC’s online edition of The Painter in Oil by Daniel Burleigh Parkhurst.  Illustrated with a short introduction by ARC Chairman. This is the Classic 19th century book on oil painting methods. It was out of print for many years and copies had become increasingly difficult to find.

Notebook’s electronic edition of Methods and Materials of Painting of the Great Schools and Masters[Originally titled: Materials for a History of Oil Painting], Vols. One and Two. Professional Essays. BySir Charles Lock Eastlake.  Originally published 1847.

Project Gutenberg’s electronic edition of The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci – Complete by Leonardo Da Vinci.

The Visual Image – Silence and Slow Time 
an essay by Charles H. Cecil © 2002.
“…Photography may have its own premise, but its use in painting deadens the artist’s perception of nature. It subordinates painting to a stereotype and makes it appear to be that which it is not…”

Notes on the Atelier by Kirk Richards

Notebook
This link to the Notebook website takes you to the Materials and Methods section; however, this is complex website, worth investigating in depth.

Pigments Through the AgesThe science of pigments; an online exhibition.