First published in 1924, Harold Speed's "The Science and Practice of Oil Painting" is the informative and fascinating guide to oil painting by the renowned painter and teacher. Speed was born in London in 1872 and studied architecture at the Royal College of Art before he began painting. He then studied art at the Royal Academy Schools and was elected to the Royal Society of Portrait Painters in 1896. Speed later wrote many instructional manuals on drawing and painting, including his widely influential "The Practice and Science of Drawing", published in 1913. Like his other works, "The Science and Practice of Oil Painting" is full of helpful advice and penetrating insights that are presented in an engaging and personal manner. Speed covers all of the important aspects that an oil painter must consider, such as materials, techniques, training exercises, and an invaluable discussion of tone, color, and form. Speed also examines in great detail the styles of many famous painters and encourages his readers to become better observers of the world around them. This classic guide is an important resource for aspiring and experienced painters as well as those that wish to better appreciate the art of painting. This edition is printed on premium acid-free paper.

Stimulating, informative guide by noted teacher covers painting technique, painting from life, materials — paints, varnishes, oils and mediums, grounds, etc. — a painter's training, more. 64 photos. 5 line drawings.

An illustrated introduction to oil painting for the beginner. Outlines the essential components of good painting and presents the basic materials and tools of the medium, with instruction on fundamental elements such as drawing, composition, value handling, colour and colour mixing.

"In any exhibition of amateur work . . . it is not at all unusual to find many charming water-colour drawings, but . . . it is very rarely that the work in the oil medium is anything but dull, dead, and lacking in all vitality and charm." — Harold Speed Such provocative assertions are characteristic of this stimulating and informative guide, written in a highly personal and unique style by a noted painter and teacher. Brimming with pertinent insights into the technical aspects and painting in oils, it is also designed to help students perfect powers of observation and expression. Harold Speed has distilled years of painting and pedagogical experience into an expert instructional program covering painting technique, painting from life, materials (paints, varnishes, oils and mediums, grounds, etc.), a painter's training, and more. Especially instructive is his extensive and perceptive discussion of form, tone, and color, and a fascinating series of detailed "Notes" analyzing the painting styles of Velasquez, Reynolds, Gainsborough, Franz Hals, and Rembrandt. Nearly 70 photographs and drawings illustrate the text, among them prehistoric cave paintings, diagrams of tonal values, stages of portrait painting, and reproductions of masterpieces by Giotto, Vermeer, Ingres, Rembrandt, Titian, Reynolds, Gainsborough, Hals, Giorgione, Poussin, Corot, Veronese, and other luminaries. In addition to these pictorial pleasures, the author further leavens the lessons with thought-provoking opinion. Clear, cogent, and down-to-earth, this time-honored handbook will especially interest serious amateurs studying the technical aspects of oil painting, but its rich insight into the mind and methods of the artist will enlighten and intrigue any art lover.

Robert Hannaford is one of Australia's foremost portrait artists, but this is only one aspect of his work. ROBERT HANNAFORD: NATURAL EYE, the first book to be published on this acclaimed artist, reveals a richer, fuller story: of an artist who deliberately places representation over abstraction, producing art that celebrates the visual world in all its variety while interrogating its place in the human imagination. Hannaford has been a finalist in every Archibald Prize exhibition since 1991, and winner of the Archibald People's Choice Prize on three occasions. His subjects include Dame Joan Sutherland, Sir Donald Bradman, Sir Edward Woodwards, Hon. Paul Keating, Jean Blackburn, Hon. Bob Hawke, Sir Gerard Brennen, Professor Rolf Prince and Hugh Stretton.