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Dover Publications

The Practice of Oil Painting and Drawing (Dover Art Instruction)

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Description

This instructive volume introduces not only the techniques of oil painting but also the underlying principles of figure drawing. Written by a distinguished Pre-Raphaelite painter, portraitist, and book illustrator, the treatment begins by explaining the construction of the figure, head, and limbs. Succeeding chapters illustrate these teachings with examples of images by the Old Masters, including paintings from the Italian, Dutch, Spanish, French, and British schools. The Birmingham Daily Post pronounced this volume "probably the most useful handbook for art students that has yet been published." Students at every level of expertise will benefit from its discourses on light and shade, monochrome study, still life in color, painting from life in monochrome, coloring a monochrome, and painting in color direct from life. Thirty-two full-color pages complement this new edition of a timeless guide. Read more

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Dover Publications (September 19, 2012)


Language ‏ : ‎ English


Paperback ‏ : ‎ 384 pages


ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0486483584


ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 80


Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.22 pounds


Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 1.25 x 8.5 inches


Best Sellers Rank: #634,572 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #129 in Oil Painting #633 in Figure Drawing Guides #8,784 in Coloring Books for Grown-Ups


#129 in Oil Painting:


#633 in Figure Drawing Guides:


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Top Amazon Reviews

    • excellent book
I bought this book after reading about it on James Gurney's art blog. The book is excellent! I own both Harold Speed's books on drawing and painting, and Solomon's Practice of Oil Painting is a wonderful addition to my small art library. The problem with painting reproductions, as described by another reviewer, has been solved. I own the latest 2012 paperback edition with an introduction by James Gurney. Not only does this book have all the black and white images which were present in the original and are reproduced here in very high quality, it also has a full set of high fidelity classical painting reproductions in the middle of the book. The prints are done in full color on glossy paper and quality of the color inserts is good enough for scanning and doing master copies. I am very happy that this book has been made available and, with so much attention to quality and detail, I'm sure it will soon reach the must-own classic status which it so richly deserves. Thanks to the good people of Dover Publications, I now own this wonderful manual which was all but lost until recently. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on October 18, 2012 by Tenshi
    • Solomon Treatise on Oil Painting & Drawing
'The Practice of Oil Painting and Drawing' by S.J.Solomon is another in the genre of books which strive to elucidate how the old Masters arrived at their station and status, and what one should do to put yourself on the same artistic path. It runs the same course as most of the others like it and can be summed up by this excerpt from the book: 'However imaginative or otherwise gifted the painter may be, he has first of all to be a painter, a sound craftsman. The knowledge of his medium of expression and its capacities are his first essential requirement; without it he is dumb--dumb as a thinker who is incapable of properly reducing his thoughts to words.' An interesting facet to Solomon's formal education is his education at the Royal Academy, which education he then declared virtually valueless, as the 'R.A. [Royal Academy] had 'little or nothing to teach; its students, as soon as they have passed the curriculum it imposes on them then make haste to betake themselves to France to learn, not only how to paint and draw, but to forget as much as they can of the practice and theory acquired at its schools.'' This is the exact same position the R.A. found itself early on in the 19th century, and here it is still floundering, still uncorrected circa 1885. (See 'American Painters on Technique, The Colonial Period to 1860,' by Lance Mayer and Gay Myers, giving an interesting historical perspective on the R.A. and the plight of students.) Solomon obviously still adheres to some of the old beliefs propounded earlier in the 19th century by teachers and Masters in the R.A., such as the use of asphaltum by Titian to achieve the beautiful 'toning' of his canvasses, and declaring the French school after Watteau, whom he declares the 'finest product of French art,' to be 'artificial and over sweet.' He mentions the Wallace collection, but only in reference to Watteau and Lancret. This seems to be a carry over from the very late 18th century to almost mid 19th century, a general despising of art engendered by the French ancien regime, particularly of leading Masters such as Francois Boucher and Fragonard. Solomon mentions the Wallace Collection, but nary a word about Boucher who figures prominently in the collection. (I have a particular fondness for Boucher and have several books re Boucher, one of the best being 'Francois Boucher, Seductive Visions,' by Jo Hedley, The Wallace Collection.) Yet, Solomon doesn't shirk his duty to exposing poor practices, even by a leading light of the R.A., such as Reynolds for his use of destructive materials such as wax in his painting. He gives an interesting anecdote (which I have read elsewhere) about a Reynolds painting warmed in the sunlight causing one of the portrait's eyes to slide down from its proper place towards the chin. This book was published in London in 1911, so I didn't have very high hopes for a spot on analysis of Master's painting techniques, given where conservation and real knowledge about such things wasn't to significantly surface until the late 1960's. However, his exposition on technique of the Masters is actually simply a critique of various paintings in the National Gallery, not really about technique, so that was a wash for me. Coming from other similar books, my favourite in this genre, still, is 'The Materials of the Artist,' by Max Doerner, professor in the Academy of Fine Arts, Munich. This isn't to say that the books coming from people like Parkhurst and Solomon aren't valuable or their content lacks worth; they are grounded in sound atelier working principles and methods and are certainly worth a read. If you are reading treatises that were formulated in the 19th century and speak to the working methods and practices of even earlier Masters, then you and I are on the same page. If, however, you eschew the Masters in their preparation and careful craftsman-like qualities of earlier centuries and embrace the laissez faire conventions of the present day, then none of these books mentioned will probably be to your ilk or liking, however much I think they should be the core of any competent art curriculum. One last note: One nice thing this book did have which others did not, was the inclusion of colour photographs of the National Gallery art works under consideration, unlike some of the other books which, however good, however packed with valuable information, had photographs resembling 10th generation Xerox copies, which certainly diminishes their impact and legibility. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on April 21, 2015 by MRoss
    • Walk through London's National Gallery with a great teacher
We are so lucky that Dover reissues teaching texts such as this. What makes Solomon Solomon's book particularly valuable is the back half of the book, in which he discusses paintings in London's National Gallery. Each painting appears in black and white and now in color plates. His insights into why and how painters from the renaissance forward made their works in the way they do are fascinating. They lift my appreciation into a new level of understanding. I purchased this book after an appearance by the author of the foreword, James Gurney, at the Portrait Society of America. His enthusiasm for the serious study of art was energizing. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on August 25, 2013 by art lover
    • Must have for Art Library
Originally published in 1911, but still relevant. James Gurney wrote in the introduction: "his strategy was to equip his students with universal scientific principles and practices that provided a basis by which an aspiring artist could pursue an individual vision." Now I want to go to the National Gallery in London with this book in hand. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2013 by Linda
    • this book should be quite good. It too arrived in good time
Looking forward to reading this and using it. I highly respect James Gurney and whatever he is involved in. So, this book should be quite good. It too arrived in good time.
Reviewed in the United States on April 27, 2016 by Mark
    • Good information
Reference
Reviewed in the United States on October 14, 2023 by T. Perrin
    • There are a few good drawings but the instruction boils down to this
I had high hopes for this book but it fell far short of expectations. There are a few good drawings but the instruction boils down to this: pay attention to negative shapes. That is the takeaway lesson here and nothing more. More than half of the book is analysis of paintings and it is not enlightening. You'd do far better to buy Harold Speed's "The Practice and Science of Drawing". Speed's book is a treasure of information that you can read again and again, absorbing something new every time. If you are aware of negative shapes in drawing, and even if you aren't, you can ignore this book. Buy Speed's book and you won't miss a thing. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on May 14, 2015 by nunya
    • Impression mistakes but good book
It is a very good book but mine came with lots of mistakes in the impression.
Reviewed in the United States on April 9, 2020 by Mary & Ignacio Gou

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