Exploring Top Books of Shelfari

An artist's survival guide, written by and for working artists. The authors explore the way art gets made, the reasons it doesn't get made, and the nature of the difficulties that cause so many artists to give up along the way.

Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain : A Course in Enhancing Creativity and Artistic Confidence

Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain : A Course in Enhancing Creativity and Artistic Confidence

by Ph.D. Edwards, Betty, Betty Edwards

Edwards uses the latest in brain research to explain how anyone can learn to draw more accurately and creatively. This edition contains a new illustrated section in color, several fully revised chapters, new sample drawings, and a new section on handwriting.

Living the Creative Life: Ideas and Inspiration from Working Artists

Living the Creative Life: Ideas and Inspiration from Working Artists

by Rice?. Freeman-Zachery

How DO they do it? If you could ask your favorite artist or crafter only one question, chances are you'd ask about creativity: Where do your ideas come from? How did you get started? What are your tricks for overcoming blocks? In Living the Creative Life, author Rice Freeman-Zachery has compiled answers to these questions and more from 15 successful artists in a variety of mediums--from assemblage to... (more)

The Undressed Art: Why We Draw

by Peter Steinhart

To draw is to understand what we see. In The Undressed Art , writer-naturalist Peter Steinhart investigates the rituals, struggles, and joys of drawing. Reflecting on what is known about the brain’s role in the drawing process, Steinhart explores the visual learning curve: how children begin to draw, how most of them stop, and what brings adults back to this deeply human art form later in life. He considers why... (more)

The Artist's Way

by Julia Cameron, Mark Bryan

NOW AVAILABLE _ Digitally remastered, and on CD for the first time Read by the author

Wabi-Sabi: for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers

Wabi-Sabi: for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers

by Leonard Koren

This extended essay in words and pictures universalizes the Japanese traditional rustic aesthetic of wabi-sabi that was developed over hundreds of years by Zen priests and teamasters. Wabi-sabi functions today as a prototypical "complete" aesthetic, nature-based and "soft" in contrast to the "hard" digital aesthetics of modern computer-age design. As such, it offers designers and other creative people a wealth... (more)

Life, Paint and Passion

by Michele Cassou

Explains how to use the creative process as an important tool for self-discovery, encouraging the reader to embark on inner exploration through the unfettered practice of painting as a means of spontaneous expression. Original.

Make Your Creative Dreams Real: A Plan for Procrastinators, Perfectionists, Busy People, and People Who Would Really Rather Sleep All Day

Make Your Creative Dreams Real: A Plan for Procrastinators, Perfectionists, Busy People, and People Who Would Really Rather Sleep All Day

by Sark

"I wanted to write a book to help all the creative dreamers make their creative dreams even more real....I have a lot to share about struggle and success, and the long flat places in between. My experiences as a recovering procrastinator and perfectionist give me a keen understanding of how they work to delay creative dreams (and why that's sometimes a good thing). I admit my 'splendid imperfections' because I... (more)

A Passion for Watercolor: Painting the Inner Experience

A Passion for Watercolor: Painting the Inner Experience

by Stefan Draughan

Believing that strong feelings make for strong art, this insightful book shows painters how to scratch the surface of their unconscious to generate powerful emotions that unleash more meaningful work. The author encourages readers to tap into childhood memories and other aspects of the inner self as revealed in animals, self-portraiture, and real or imagined landscapes. Using this approach, plus the fluid... (more)

Spirit Taking Form: Making a Spiritual Practice of Making Art

Spirit Taking Form: Making a Spiritual Practice of Making Art

by Nancy J. Azara

Anyone can make art. Finding one's spiritual center can come of making art. Making art can come of finding one's spiritual center. Nancy Azara has been teaching the making of art, art-making as a spiritual practice, and other spiritual practices for thirty-five years. She has developed a system that combines her lifelong spiritual practice with techniques designed to help anyone get and stay in touch with their... (more)

The Artist Inside: A Spiritual Guide to Cultivating Your Creative Self

The Artist Inside: A Spiritual Guide to Cultivating Your Creative Self

by Tom Crockett

A fresh new approach to tapping into our own creativity, using the images and artifacts of our dreams. Getting inspired is one of the toughest parts of being an artist, whether we're a beginner or a seasoned professional. But as Tom Crockett shows us in this new book, finding ideas for our artwork is easier than we think. By simply exploring the images of our sleeping and waking dream states, we can discover a... (more)

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Tags: making art

Art & Fear

by Ted Orland, David Bayles