Abstract Painting: The Elements of Visual Language

A wonderful book It scaffolds each element and principle--a class in a book . It's clear if you do the book you will have all elements and principles down and how to combine them freely as they will be embedded in your brain. You will be able to use them with any genre of drawing or painting when you are done. Totally step up your game and get this little book. Update: Gone through the line exercises and the shapes sampler-just getting to shape collages. Better than I even thought it could be. The exercises are deceptively simple--you can make them as easy or difficult as you like. It is like chess; the rules are simple, but mastering the game is much more difficult. This is a book that one can use if you are a beginner or an expert, or as with most of us somewhere in between. You can go back to this book and do the exercises all over again at a different skill level. It can be as simple or as, or as difficult as one wants to make it. I read a low rating of this book that said it was so elementary that it was essentially for beginners. That person hasn't risen to the tremendous challenge of the author's intent. Prepare yourself to have great playful and/or challenging exercises. How about 6 stars....

I really appreciate this book - Davies has a clear and insightful point of view on how to build the skills and emotional depth for creating abstract art. Her tips and suggestions are tangible and well thought out, and the illustrations make each page more interesting and the concepts easier to understand. I see reviews complaining about paper quality, etc. This is not a coffee table book. It’s an instructional guide. The format, paper choice & design are well suited for this purpose. An excellent investment and an enjoyable read.

This book is relatively complete, and a good introduction to elements of painting and composition and mark making in general. I have been studying art for quite a while, and it didn't meet my needs. One quick criticism is that whatever program the author used to de-saturate the value scales on pp 46-47 isn't doing what she thinks it is doing, that is why she is getting "surprising" results. There is no way that Hansa Yellow Medium is the same value as Cerulean Blue Chromium. Also, cad red dark is not the complement of pthalo green, rather alizarin crimson is, and her whole color wheel is outdated. Modern painters embrace hansa yellow, magenta, and pthalo blue as the primaries. However, in general, with the above caveats, this is a lot of useful introductory material in one place.

I have a lot of books about art and this is my favorite. Thorough content, numerous images on almost every page and simple explanations can help both beginner and experienced painters wanting a refresh. Bought this around 2017 and it’s my go to book for ideas and information. Not all of the art is my style but it’s still extremely informative. Author’s writing style also makes content very accessible. Well done.

I love this book. I bought it because I had borrowed it from the library repeatedly and I was reading it from there. She gives such practical, yet atypical insight into painting in the abstract. I really appreciate her outside the box approach. Because I had already read it cover to cover, when my copy came, I simply put it on the shelf and didn't look at it. Big mistake. 90% of the book is bound upside down and backwards. I technically can read it but it's a chore to do. Until one gets to page 89 and then it reads exactly right. Wish I'd known sooner so that I could have it replaced with a properly printed copy. When I contacted the author, she immediately offered to replace the book with a good copy! I can't speak highly enough about her commitment to providing a good book!

This book seduced me…one thing led to another, not being uncomfortable but now having a way open for free expression and help on better learning techniques,on ways to mix color mud or ways to mix remarkable colors you hadn’t considered before. Now instead of feeling like I probably ought to quit because everybody knows I have no talent. I show up with ideas and techniques and tools. I go into a state of mind that has no time. I am in that painting state of place and peace comes over me. My body relaxes and when I finally do come out of my headspace of painting there is a painting there that sings to me, has a message

I am getting back into painting after 50+ years away from it. Back then I was hung up on my perfectionist attitude regarding my efforts. I decided this time to get away from representational art and to just have fun with painting. Davis' book is very helpful to a novice as she describes certain techniques and suggests exercises that a beginner can easily do. The pictures of other's works are fun to look at and the author adds short discussions on features to observe. Other reviewers have mentioned the quality of the book itself to be lacking in color reproductions, thin paper etc. None of this troubled me, or I did not see it that way.

I absolutely love, love, love this book. I’ve been painting for years, and knew I loved abstract art, but had no idea how to evaluate a piece — mine or others’. This book breaks down exactly how to do that, and describes the elements of abstract painting in a very approachable manner. In my opinion, this is a great book for both beginners and professionals. Highly recommend if you want to expand your abstract painting knowledge.

This was delivered maybe three hours ago and I just finished reading and highlighting it. Really useful tips, and I can't wait to try some new techniques!

Changes how I think about making paintings. You don’t have to be an abstract artist to find this very helpful, it’s all relevant for figurative work too. Clearly explained and well produced, lots of excellent illustrations

Poor quality but information is good

Excellent advice for all levels of artist. Jane is a renowned teacher and keeps her information simple and easily understood. Comprehensive and well illustrated.

This is hands down the best book on abstract painting I've ever bought. Fantastic. I've learned SO much from it. Its exactly what I needed and I can see now that mastering the elements of art is the key to truly being able to understand and create abstract work. I can't recommend this book highly enough. ❤️