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Libro de calidad artística tan bello como indispensable

Disponía en mi modesta biblioteca personal de un libro anterior de esta gran artista norteamericana (Alyona Nickelsen), titulado "Colored Pencil Painting Bible". Me cautivó desde la primera hasta la última de sus páginas, tanto por la belleza de las ilustraciones como por las enseñanzas que esta artista imparte en dicho libro. Y ahora, con la compra de este segundo título, "Colored Pencil Painting Portraits", mi admiración por ella y por su talento ha aumentado en grado superlativo. Recomiendo sinceramente su compra; será un placer su lectura, estudio y consulta para cualquier persona con sensibilidad artística.

A 3 personas les ha parecido esto útil

Bought new book. Book that arrived was clearly second hand

VV.

Revisado en España el 3 de marzo de 2022

I paid for a new book and the one that arrived was clearly second-hand. It has a (very) dirty thumb-mark on the edges of the pages- exactly where one would rest one's thumb when holding the book- and the level of dirt of the mark is consistent with much use. The cover is scored (and therefore indented) multiple times- clearly someone put some paper on top of the book and then filled in that paper with a pencil (presumably testing the techniques that are explained in the book). The book itself is good. I have requested a replacement.

Núria V. R.

Revisado en España el 26 de octubre de 2018

No le pongo 5 estrellas porque me tocará refrescar el ingles (para variar) y aún no lo he leido entero. Me pareció un libro muy interesante y más al empezar un curso de retrato con lápices de colores.

Revisado en España el 11 de agosto de 2018

Un libro especialmente bonito. Para el que le guste el retrato, es muy indicado.

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Ongo Gablogian

Inspirational

Revisado en Reino Unido el 27 de agosto de 2017

Firstly, I have to say that I`m a bit of a fanboy when it comes to Alyona, as the ideas and advice she offers in her first book had such a massive positive impact on my art work that I`ve not looked back since. Not only did Alyona`s "Colored Pencil Painting Bible" open my eyes as to what could be achieved with coloured pencils and different effects, it gave me the confidence that the medium itself was one that deserves respect, and I discovered that there is a whole community of amazingly talented artists using them; not just Alyona, but Lisa Clough (Lachri Fine Art) too and many others. Also, the artists themselves are so helpful, friendly and supportive. There is no sense that they want to keep their skills and knowledge to themselves, which is wonderful.

The difference between this book and her bible is that whereas the majority of the work in the first book promoted the use of layering, blenders and odourless mineral spirits in order to get a luminant and smooth, pencil stroke-free finishes to your work - and focused mainly on still life - this is about portraits and the tools you need. The effects are totally different and the subject is different so there is a need for some serious commitment on the part of the reader to buy into Alyona`s new techniques - and they are revolutionary for this field.

Different paper is needed, tools normally used for pastels too, in addition to Alyona`s own creations - further info. you can find on her Brush and Pencil website and available in the UK - texture fixative, final fixative, touch-up texture, titanium white powder and the amazing miracle that is the powder blender. I spent many hours watching different artists using these on Youtube before I even bought the paper I would need. (I opted for Uart 500 sanded paper to start with. I thought that would be much easier than using acrylic gessos). The key to understanding and enjoying all of this book is that you need paper with teeth! Using the powder blender first on your paper and applying very soft layers of coloured pencil, you can move the pigment around with pastel tools, creating an incredibly smooth blend of colour, and using the texture fixative you can add layer after layer, adding previously unthinkable depth and value to your image.

Alyona understands an amazing amount about colour theory and art history, but also about the science behind the application of pencil to paper, and all the products she uses are Brush and Pencil brand because a) she invented them! and b) there are no alternatives! As I work through this book, I cannot believe the art I`m able to produce... but it is very important that you understand that it is almost like learning water colour when you`ve only worked in oil; it isn`t that the knowledge you have isn`t helpful, but you`ll need to learn a new technique - from scratch. If you read the book, and understand the science, you`ll be amazed. But don`t think you can get these results without the understanding first, commitment second, and thirdly, prepare for some damage to your bank balance as you`ll definitely need to make some purchases.

A 38 personas les ha parecido esto útil

J. McDonald

Coloured Pencil Painting Portraits.

Revisado en Reino Unido el 18 de noviembre de 2020

I was critical of this author's other book “Coloured Pencil Painting Bible” and this follow-up volume hasn't changed my opinion by much.
To be very clear from the outset – this is not in my opinion a beginner's book and I found some of it heavy stuff to digest.
There's a lot of information in the book, a great deal of it technical, analytical and process-based; she clearly knows a great deal about her medium and it's all here, should one wish to avail one's self of it.
However, Nickelsen`s idea of realism is very photographic – as in working from photographs; now, if that's what suits go ahead, but although I have no problem with Photorealist or Hyperrealist art, those processes often uncover abstract and more considered aspects of depiction – the methods laid out here seem to be very subservient to the primacy of the photographic image – even involving tracing.
Realism means a lot of things to different artists, so I don`t wish to get into a disagreement with this artist's particular approach – suffice it to say that it is not mine, nor is it one I would advocate to my own students unless it was appropriate to an individual's requirements.
The “Look inside” option above gives a fairly accurate impression of the contents – one must decide for one's self if that is of value, but I found it ponderously technical and not at all useful to my own drawing/painting/teaching practice.

A 9 personas les ha parecido esto útil

J. Magee

Even beginners can learn a lot from this book.

Revisado en Reino Unido el 26 de diciembre de 2018

This is an amazing book. I read the reviews before I bought it and they all said "not for beginners". Well I am a beginner but I read a lot.
Up until now I have mainly drawn animals in coloured pencil but my technique is terrible. Try as I might I cannot get my colour to look anything like the photographs in the instruction books I am following. Now I have an idea how to remedy the situation.
This is a marvellous book and her explanations are second to non.

A 15 personas les ha parecido esto útil

C. Hughes

Heavy going

Revisado en Reino Unido el 1 de diciembre de 2017

The first half of the book is about colour theory and art history, it’s heavy going, overly analytical and at times downright boring. The second half which deals with the techniques and use of blending products is closer to what I hoped for when I bought the book. The author is a fabulous artist and I have been impressed enough to buy her products but I didn’t enjoy the book.

A 15 personas les ha parecido esto útil

Kindle Customer

Interesting read

Revisado en Reino Unido el 22 de junio de 2017

This is a very interesting read with a lot of information about painting with oil paint and colour pencil, contrasting the techniques in each medium to get similar results. There is a lot of fascinating information about materials, color theory and other aspects of painting. The second part of the book takes you through the techniques of portrait painting using techniques and new products from the Brush and Pencil co which can give paintings using colour pencil which look like oils. Whatever stage you are at with colour pencil this book is relevant and it is an interesting read and well illustrated.

A 8 personas les ha parecido esto útil