Ready to Paint: Watercolour Landscapes

Oct 07

Long ago, all the main materials suppliers sold printed outlines that came with instructions on how to complete the image using their colours. Broadly speaking, it was painting by numbers for grown-ups and, if your basic drawing let you down, it was a very good way to get over the first hurdle and start producing paintings that look reasonably enough like their subject. It's easy to sneer at this approach, but it worked for a lot of people and, if it gave confidence, one can hope that skills and abilities followed.

In this book, Terry Harrison paints five scenes and gives you very detailed (far more stages than usual) step-by-step instructions. What he also provides is a tracing paper outline of the initial sketch so that you can get the relative proportions right without worry - and which you can use again and again. Once you start painting you're on your own paper and at the same point you would be if you'd done the sketch yourself. You don't put the colour down in blocks, but rather use all the same techniques of washes, blending and glazing that you'd learn from any other book.

No, it's not for the serious artist, but for the beginner struggling to find the right place to start, it could be that revelation that gets them going.

Oct 07

Want to paint but cannot draw well enough? Why confine yourself to paint-by-numbers kits when you can use the revolutionary new Ready To Paint series of books from Search Press?

This really is a good way to learn; I wish it had been available years ago! The drawing part has been done for you in the form of pull-out tracings, so all you need to do is transfer them to watercolour paper and away you go. Full instructions are given not only on how to transfer the tracings, but also on how to paint the five attractive landscapes (plus a summer version of the winter view). These include a lovely winter scene reminiscent of a Christmas card (use it for your holiday decorating) and my own favorite, a beautiful bluebell wood. Expect the usual easy to follow staged instructions illustrated with photographs of the work in progress, and a handy list of what paints and brushes you need to buy. When you have done all this you will surely feel more ready to tackle a bit of drawing on your own, and if you need instruction for this too Search Press has a fine library of books on drawing. At under GBP10 (or US$20) this book also makes an ideal present for the budding artist on your gift list. It's a simple idea, but what a good one!

Terry Harrison grew up in Norfolk, UK. His early art education was basic and he never dreamed that he would one day become an artist. At fifteen, Terry moved to Hampshire and, inspired by his brilliant art teacher, won a place at Farnham Art School at the age of sixteen. After graduating he became a graphic artist but continued to paint in his spare time. In 1984 Terry gave up his job to paint full time and never looked back, teaching and demonstrating his watercolour techniques throughout the world, developing his own range of brushes and paints and writing over 20 best-selling books that have been translated into many languages. Sadly, Terry passed away in 2017 but his legacy lives on. His gift for explaining his methods in an easy and accessible way has encouraged countless people to take up painting, and his beautiful works of art, inspired by the English countryside that he loved, will continue to be enjoyed by people all over the world.