Archives: Walter Foster Books

Inking Animals demonstrates how to use traditional inking techniques to create whimsical, original illustrations of your favorite animals. This dynamic guide is ideal for beginners, as well as traditional artists who want to explore pen and ink on a more playful level.

Talented artist Sova Huova instructs art enthusiasts in drawing, inking, and coloring techniques; explores abstraction for expressive artwork; and gives tips for digital touches—all with easy-to-follow instruction. Beginning with an introduction to tools and materials, artists will find helpful tips for working with inks, pens, and watercolor. Inking Animals features a wide range of creative and fun inking techniques and unique projects that are simple and engaging. Huova’s valuable tips and tricks, creative prompts, and exercises will encourage artists to experiment and play as they learn.

Huova will teach you to illustrate a vast menagerie of animals from the woodland, home, farm, wilderness, and imagination. Among them are a bear, fox, hedgehog, dog, guinea pig, donkey, owl, raven, and even a unicorn. 

Featuring a variety of creative tips, techniques, exercises, and step-by-step projects, Inking Animals is the perfect resource for pen and ink illustrators of all levels.

Fairies, mermaids, and angels have captivated imaginations throughout the centuries. Embodying all that is feminine, sparkly, and magical, these fantastic creatures have found their ways into countless stories, films, and works of art that appeal to people of all ages. And now anyone can discover how to bring them to life in watercolor with this delightful 64-page guide. Inside, artist-author Meredith Dillman shares the methods of her unique artistic style, which is influenced by Pre-Raphaelite paintings, turn-of-the-twentieth-century book illustrations, and modern-day Japanese manga—a combination that results in beautiful, contemporary artwork. Meredith provides instruction specific to creating the mythical beauties and their whimsical surroundings, showing readers how to draw and paint faces, bodies, hair, clothing, and more. The author also guides readers through several inspiring projects, demonstrating how to re-create the magic step by step.

From pencil, to paint, to mixed media, no medium is left untouched in Art Studio: Dogs, a perfect choice for artists who are just getting started.

*Named One of the 54 Best Colored Pencil Drawing Books of All Time by BookAuthority*

Love art and dogs? Now you can get the best of both of worlds with Art Studio: Dogs. Created especially with beginning artists and art enthusiasts in mind, this engaging book includes a variety of fun and unique drawing, painting, and mixed media projects designed to help you transform your love of canines into beautiful works of art.

After a review of some basic tools, materials, and helpful art techniques, you’ll discover how to create your favorite furry companions in graphite, oil, acrylic, colored pencil, and more—step by step! From traditional drawing and painting projects, to colorful pop art portraits, dog doodles, and mixed media wall art, there is a little something for every one and every type of dog lover in Art Studio: Dogs.

This compilation of some of our most popular How to Draw and Paint and Artist's Library series titles gives artists the perfect introduction to the basics of drawing. The Art of Basic Drawing contains fundamental information about tools and techniques, as well as a number of inspiring step-by-step lessons. With instruction and advice from five different accomplished artists, this book showcases a range of styles for beginners to imitate. And with simple, easy-to-follow lessons that cover a variety of subject matter-from engaging still lifes and beautiful landscapes to realistic people and adorable animals-there is something for everyone inside. With the inspiring material in this comprehensive reference book, you’ll soon discover how exciting the world of drawing can be!

Vernon Kerr was born in Bellevue, Pennsylvania, in 1938. Recognizing his young son's talent, his father secured an apprenticeship for him with Leon Franks. Vernon studied with Franks for four years and was an accomplished artist by age 23. His first taste of fame occurred when he was the youngest artist to be published by the International Art Publishing Company. He worked as a naval illustrator while stationed in Japan during his time in the U.S. Navy and had also won numerous awards for his portraits, marines, and still lifes before his move to Laguna Beach, California, in 1959. Vernon was a professional artist for 26 years and was internationally known for his seascapes and landscapes. He taught at his own school in Laguna Beach and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, for 15 years. He once said, "Painting is not fun unless I am learning something new, and nature is my greatest teacher." Vernon passed away in 1982 at the age of 44.

Oil & Acrylic: Pastoral Landscapes combines two popular and aesthetically pleasing subjects in art-landscapes and flowers. Ideal for beginning and intermediate artists seeking to develop their oil and acrylic painting skills, Oil & Acrylic: Pastoral Landscapes offers basic information for learning to paint a variety of colorful scenes using the time-treasured mediums of oil and acrylic. Beginning with detailed information on working with oil and acrylic tools and materials, this book introduces artists to the basics, including paints and brushes, mediums, supports, basic color theory, paint mixing, composition, lighting, and more. Simple-to-follow, step-by-step projects start with an initial sketch and progress to a final, colorful painting, appealing to artists of all skill levels. With the guidance of talented professional painter David Lloyd Glover, beginning and intermediate artists alike will discover how easy it is to paint in oil and acrylic thanks to the easy-to-follow step-by-step lessons provided. Engaging tips are included throughout, allowing artists to put their newfound skills to practical use right away. Oil & Acrylic: Pastoral Landscapes guides readers through the learning process as they discover how to paint a variety of color-rich, dynamic scenes, including a quaint English cottage, a beautiful covered bridge, and a rustic vineyard.

Whether a beautiful black bear, furtive fox, or sprightly squirrel, Forest Animals features a wide array of majestic creatures. Drawing in pencil is a fundamental topic in art instruction and a good starting point for any artist, whether a novice or a master. In Drawing Made Easy:Forest Animals, artists will learn everything they need to know for achieving realistic animal and wildlife compositions in pencil, while intermediate artists will have an opportunity to brush up on key pencil-drawing skills. Along the way, artists will also learn valuable information about planning a drawing; working from photographs; mastering perspective; and rendering a range of textures, including fur, trees and tree bark, foliage, and much more. The book opens with an introduction to the basic drawing tools and materials, including pencils, erasers, supports, and blending tools. From choosing the right drawing paper to learning how to handle the pencil to mastering basic pencil strokes, Forest Animals features valuable information for learning to draw wildlife in graphite pencil. With in-depth step-by-step projects that progress to detailed, realistic final drawings, artists will learn to draw a variety of interesting forest animals, including a raccoon, a deer, and a pair of foxes. With expert instruction, a breadth of subject matter, helpful tips, and inspirational artwork, Forest Animals is the perfect addition to any animal-loving artist’s reference library.

Drawing: Colored Pencil Basics contains everything aspiring artists need to learn about drawing with colored pencil. This colorful, comprehensive guidebook explores blending and layering colors, plus a range of styles and techniques for creating your own works of art in colored pencil. Step-by-step lessons demonstrate how to draw strikingly realistic animals, landscapes, still lifes, and more. Whether you’re a novice or an accomplished artist who has never experimented with colored pencil, this book will provide the instruction and inspiration you need to master this versatile medium.

Known to perk up moods, rooms, and gardens, flowers are the subject of this fresh and colorful book from the Drawing Made Easy series.

*Named One of the 54 Best Colored Pencil Drawing Books of All Time by BookAuthority*

Flowers in Colored Pencil pairs the lively, vibrant strokes of colored pencil with a stunning array of botanicals. Inside, accomplished artist Cynthia Knox teaches her method of developing a colored pencil drawing through simple step-by-step demonstrations, with helpful tips and tricks sprinkled throughout. She also discusses basic flower shapes, anatomy, photographing references, and setting up dynamic still lifes.

From garden and tropical flower portraits to gorgeous floral still lifes, there is a project to suit every flower lover, including:

  • Rose Portrait
  • Yellow Daisy
  • Pink Petunias
  • Casablanca Lilies
  • Parrot Tulips
  • And more

With this book, you’re sure to discover the secrets to creating beautiful artwork you’ll cherish. So, sharpen your pencils and get ready. It’s time to bring nature’s vibrant blooms to life on paper!

Over the past decade, manufacturers have made drastic improvements to acrylic paint that make it wonderfully appealing to the fine artist. An extensive array of acrylic mediums is available, allowing artists to lengthen the drying time of the paint, completely alter the paint’s consistency, add an iridescent sheen, and much more. This book offers all the information a contemporary artist needs to be on the cutting edge of this versatile medium.