Paint lively and lovable animals of all kinds! Capture all the natural charm and personality of your favorite animals. Bestselling author and beloved teacher Claudia Nice makes it fun. With step-by-step guidance, Claudia shows you just how easy it is to paint a menagerie of lively creatures in her trademark pen, ink and watercolor technique. Follow along and see for yourself. Whether you are a beginner attempting to paint your first animal subject, or a more experienced artist looking to broaden your skills, you'll find this book to be both entertaining and instructive. It features: 14 complete step-by-step demonstrations A range of delightful animal subjects, including dogs, cats, horses, pigs, sheep, bunnies, birds, and more 60+ mini demos and quick studies that focus on getting the details right, such as fur, feathers, feet, facial expressions and backgrounds Techniques for painting from photos, sketches and memories Key tips for working with ink and watercolors successfully Claudia starts by simplifying the animal subject into basic shapes and diagrams. She then shows you how to refine these shapes into drawings. From there, you'll gently add color in simple washes and finish the details with pen and ink. Discover the versatility and satisfaction of painting with pen, ink and watercolor, and watch your favorite animals spring to life with a charm and detail you've never captured before.

Artists seem compelled to try to capture the amazing variety of the animal kingdom; the challenge remains how to breathe energy into your paintings and make the animals jump off the paper. This deeply practical book offers an accessible introduction to sketching animals from life, to try to capture that essence. It gives instruction on how to approach drawing; covers ideas for materials and supplies to make sketching from life a joy; gives step-by-step demonstrations of different watercolour techniques; offers specific advice on using colour and painting, fur, feathers and features and gives ideas for mixed-media experimentation. Full of colourful examples and guidance, this new book explains how to transform your studies into finished artwork that are brimming with character. It encourages you to find the extraordinary in the everyday, as well as revelling in the breadth of nature. Taking a contemporary approach to traditional watercolour, the author shows how a few, well-chosen brushes of paint can reveal the soul of your subject.

Line and wash is an exciting combination. This practical book shows you how to exploit the strength of ink with the transparency of watercolour to produce powerful and dynamic paintings. With over 170 illustrations, it covers a wide range of styles and subjects, before exploring mixed media, new surfaces and other ways to take your line and wash work to another level. Includes advice on choosing materials; exercises to hone your drawing and painting skills; gives inspiration for new approaches to line and wash and, finally, step-by-step demonstrations of ideas and projects. This book is a visual treat and an essential guide for all artists who want to try this exciting technique.

In Sketching Your Favorite Subjects in Pen & Ink, Claudia Nice covers all aspects of pen and ink drawing. You'll find complete instruction for and demonstration of techniques such as crosshatching, stippling, texture and value contrasts, as well as the use of contour, parallel and scribble lines. All of theses techniques are illustrated throughout by the author's striking works. You'll find chapters detailing: Houses and Buildings: using freehand and architectural styles, learn to detail barns, houses and cityscapes. Animals: draw realistic animals by focusing on anatomy, facial features and hair texture. The Plant Kingdom: learn to sketch plants, flowers, leaves and trees - from an individual flower to an entire forest. Faces and Figures: sketch realistic, dynamic figures and capture varying moods. Birds: learn to draw lifelike feathers, eyes, bills and feet. Waterscapes: capture the reflections of a quiet brook and the spray of crashing surf.

Learn how to draw realistic animal portraits with this insightful guide! Using affordable felt tip pens and markers, both beginning and experienced artists will practice drawing 26 amazing animals from A to Z – including elephants, frogs, and sloths – and all of their unique features and textures. With step-by-step instructions and illustrations, drawing techniques include stippling, cross-hatching, and more to create tons of realistic details. Also included with each drawing project are reference photos and fun facts pertaining to each animal!

Methods of merging soft luminous washes with sharp, crisp definite penwork are made easy with this book. Each stage of the painting process is illustrated in a highly practical way, using step-by-step photographs and a colourful selection of finished paintings.

Showing how to paint a variety of leaves, vines, weathered wood arbors, birdbaths, and other outdoor details, bestselling author Claudia Nice provides all the information artists need to create gorgeous country garden art. 150 color illustrations.

“We have more to learn from animals than the animals have to learn from us.” – Anthony Douglas Williams Animals are fascinating drawing subjects for most artists. Drawing lively animal portraits brings with it another level of excitement, not to mention challenges, such as bringing out that mischievous spark in a dog’s eyes or that vicious promise of impending violence in a lion’s eyes. The facial proportions of the animals, the fur or the pattern of scales on their bodies are yet other challenges difficult to master. Not anymore. In this book, you will learn how to draw expressive and lively portraits of a range of animals, from your humble house pets to vicious forest dwellers. What will you learn in this book? · All about values and how they are especially important in a pen and ink drawing. How to determine the values and use them in a drawing. · Pen and ink drawing techniques. · Materials available for pen and ink drawing. · Shading techniques. · Ink painting and techniques. · Foreshortening – the concept and its usage in drawing animal portraits. Since the best way to learn is through hands-on experience, throughout this book, you will actually draw animal portraits using 20 step-by-step demonstrations. We’ll be focusing on seven categories of animals, including: · Elephants · Cat family (felines) · Dog family (canine) · Reptiles · Horse family · Rodents · Monkeys

Jean Haines' enthusiasm for watercolours burst through every page of this inspirational book that will guide you, step by step, to creating beautiful and unique paintings of your own, whatever your ability. Accomplished artist Jean Haines shares her passion for watercolours in this wonderfully practical book. Known for her exciting techniques and love of colour, Jean takes you on an inspirational painting journey on which you'll encounter, amongst other things, magical watercolour flow, glorious washes, sunbursts, and a magnificent 'hotting it up' finale. With her simple exercises, clear advice and easy-to-follow projects, Jean pushes the boundaries and will alter the way you think about watercolours and painting for ever. With a selection of popular subjects, including animals, landscapes, buildings, flowers and people, there is something for everyone here, whatever their artistic ability.