Art Info, Books, On-line Tutorials, and other sources

Please read this I know it is long.
I believe it to be well worth your time.
I believe in education too via books and from other people.
Always be willing to learn new things and apply knowledge.
Also for you high schoolers GO TO COLLEGE :)
Thx
Alfred

In the past I drew various subjects but in the last year I decided to focus on cars. I have been drawing my entire life. I am in my late 20s now. I am not sure how old you are but if you are in high school take art classes and try to learn from what ever it is you are drawing. I remember having to draw what I considered stupid stuff like bowls, egg cartons, plants, and drinking glasses. Believe it or not that stuff can really help in automobile drawing and rendering.

If you are not a reader you need to become one. I never read books while I was in high school, but while in the Air Force I started to read. Read magazines that are interesting to you.
Reading really makes you a better person. I read all kinds of art technique books even ones about subjects I am not interested in because you never know what you can gain and apply to autos. I read books about many topics other than art too.

What I have found about art books in particular car art books is that they are not complete meaning you must read from many. Here is a list of recommended books, and websites.

Remember read with the goal of, “What can I take away from this book and apply to what I want to draw, render, paint, etc." Another thing don’t get stuck in a certain medium always expand your self and experiment. Try paint, markers, pastel, and etc. Don’t stay with just pencil. That is just my opinion take it for what it is worth.

WARNING ABOUT BOOKS. Read reviews and try to check these out from you library first. Just don’t go out and buy them because you might not like them. Many can be found at Barnes & Nobles. Review them there and then purchase them from Amazon.com because they are cheaper. You can also get them from your Library. Remember if they do not have them ask the library to purchase them. Libraries can also get them from other non-local libraries called inter-library loans. You can also think about joining a book club.

The New Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain by Betty Edwards
A great book, very in depth but will improve your drawing ability.

How to Draw Life Like Portraits from Photographs by Lee Hammond
A good book about the grid technique and shading, shading is what gives your subject (cars) realism

Drawing Realistic Textures in Pencil by J.D. Hillberry.
A very good book, highly technical and the author assumes you can already draw

How to Draw Cars Like a Pro by Thom Taylor
A great book for using color application I do believe it could have gone into more detail.

Drawing and Painting Racing Cars by Michael Turner
This is a good book for inspiration. It has some demonstrations but I believe it to be a more advance source.

(About painting)
Painting will require much research and practice. You will have to read books about painting that don’t necessarily talk about cars. For instance:

Painting Spectacular Light Effects in Water Color by Paul Jackson
This book covers painting buildings, glass, and metallic objects etc. Uhmmm sounds like that could be applied to rendering cars. See what I mean look for ways to apply what you read.

Look for books that cover painting styles in realism.

Another book.

Paint Radiant Realism in Water Color, Ink and Colored Pencil by Sueelleen Ross

Books about art safety and legal aspects for using photos as references.

Legal Guide for the Visual Artist Fourth Edition By Tad Crawford
http://www.fplc.edu/tfield/CopyVis.htm
http://www.copyright.gov/
http://www.contactmylawyer.com/copyrighttrademark.html
http://www.southbaygallery.com/copyright.htm

The Artist's Complete Health and Safety Guide Third Edition by Monona Rossol
Links to online safety about art scroll down
http://www.khake.com/page42.html

WARNING ABOUT ART DUST
I like to wear a doctor’s mask because dust from pencil graphite and especially chalk (soft pastels) bother me. You may want to wear one a times too, especially if you put your face close to where you are working. Make sure you don’t drool on you artwork. :)


Finally online help sources, and then I will give it a rest. :)

I just found this site. Check it out there is a ton of info here. I think this is the mother of all online sources for artists. Don’t forget to scroll down. This site covers art eduction, careers in visual arts, tutorials, and many other related topics.
http://www.khake.com/page42.html

http://www.sibleyfineart.com/index.htm?tipsndx.htm
This is the best one I have found. There are lots of tutorials so make sure to check them out.

http://homepages.tesco.net/~p.wilkinson/
More nice tutorials

YellowDoor tutorials using Adobe Illustrator
http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/t108575.html
http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/t108576.html

These do not have the best pictures put I tried to explain the best I could.
http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/t104303.html
http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/t103473.html

I answer ?s about paper and supplies in this one. The link shows a better example of chalk and marker artwork. There is room for improvement.:) Always
http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/t96497.html

WARNING ABOUT PASTELS
Pastels do not mix. You cannot take red and orange to make the color red-orange for example. If you notice when you go to an art store and look at pastels they come in a ton of colors because of that reason. Pastels will layer on top of each other for nice effects but they no not blend together to form new colors. If you notice on my Ferrari I have some weird murky colors going in the hood and just pass the side window. I was trying to mix pastel-chalk to create new colors. I added blue on top of red and got that murky look. My mess-up can be seen in my firebird tutorial link above.

Well I hope this gets you started.

Take care,

Remember you will mess-up but keep pressing on and practicing. Also save your works, even the miss haps, so you can learn and see how far you have progressed.

Alfred

How to Design Cars Like a Pro by Tony Lewin; a great book on auto design. Gives a "day in the life of a designer", and guides to creating your own design step by step. It uses real concepts to illustrate as well.


And Doug Dubosque has a great series out for beginners, some of which are very informative.

Learn to Draw in 3-D, which is a step by step to learning accurate perspective on landscapes, cars, and other things.

Learn to Draw Cars, which is a step by step on drawing cars in 2D and 3D, shading, drawing wheels, and creating your own cars.

KustmAce,

Thx so much for posting that book. I will have to check it out.
I just read some reviews at Amazon.

How is the book in the technique department? Does it show you anything or is the author just talking about concepts?

Thx

alfred