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A-Z of Bird Portraits
Andrew Forkner

Search Press
21 October 2014 / ISBN-13: 9781782210023
How-To Books/Painting

Reviewed by Rachel A Hyde

 

Have you always wanted to paint lifelike pictures of birds? Inside these covers are staged instructions on how to paint twenty-seven of them in acrylics.

You know when Search Press gives a book a hard cover instead of a paper one to expect something special and this is no exception. Self taught wildlife artist Andrew Forkner sets out his love of birds and acrylics in a user friendly manner, ranging from what you need to buy to painting tips. Learn how to capture feathers on paper as well as birds; feet and beaks, get to grips with the unique properties of acrylics and think about how to compose your picture. Each project has a drawing to trace with instructions on how to do this, plus what paint and brushes to use and even the type of paper. This is not a step-by-step book in the usual Search Press sense, as the instructions are remarkably brief. But it does not state anywhere that this is a beginner's book and it is not; aimed more at existing artists who want to try their hand at using acrylics and painting birds. There is a wide choice of these to paint, with British and American species being the main ones represented. Choose from favourites like a golden eagle, robin, kookaburra, bald eagle and mourning dove to name a few; the end results are handsomely displayed as whole page illustrations in this large format book. This ought to appeal to any bird lover with a bit of painting experience who wants to try something new.

If you cannot find a good range of acrylic painting materials locally try www.searchpress.com for a list of suppliers.

Reviews of other titles by this author

A-Z of Bird Portraits
Drawing Birds

 

UK Reviewer: Rachel Hyde's work can be found in The Bead Magazine, Making Jewellery and www.craftsuprint.com/rachel-a-hyde/
Reviewed 2014
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