I am reviewing books through the Blogging for Books program in an effort to support my community’s Little Free Library, thus the addition of book reviews outside of the usual sexual health topics to Your Sexy Librarian postings. After being reviewed, the book gets stamped “Always a Gift, Never for Sale” and placed into a Little Free Library for others to enjoy.
My latest book selection is Foundations of Drawing: A Practical Guide to Art History, Tools, Techniques, and Styles by American artist Al Gury, who is a professor at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia (PAFA), which was released on June 13. Gury chairs the painting department at PAFA and has shown his works at several museums and galleries around the United States.
Foundations of Drawing begins with Gury telling everyone why they need to buy and use his book. I was frankly turned off by this approach and, thus, struggled to finish reading Gury’s book as a result. At least there are redeeming qualities of the book that make up for this disappointing start.
The cover of Foundations of Drawing is a gorgeous display of different drawing styles and is ultimately why I chose this book to review. The back cover copy is mediocre and does not tantalize readers. The body font is readable with a layout that is reminiscent of art textbooks, such as H.W. Janson’s History of Art.
Gury covers the history of drawing, drawing with different drawing media, and drawing techniques. The absolute gems of Foundations of Drawings are the examples of different drawings throughout the book. Visually, these examples are like strolling through a museum.
At $24.99 for the paperback edition, Foundations of Drawings is a slightly expensive museum stroll. For readers who can push past the introduction, this book will be a good investment in art education.
Disclaimer: I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.
XOXO,
