Looking closer at your subjects and really seeing them really makes a difference to drawing skills. Kateri Ewing does a great job at describing in detail how to observe your subject and make your marks. I like the pages on hatching and cross hatching as I’ve been wanting to learn that for some time.

I feel that the watercolor part is limited but the charcoal and graphite parts are great. Really worth a look at for the beginner who wants to improve on their drawing.

Really practical drawing guide for realistic drawing. I have always struggled to really see objects and break them down into familiar shapes. This book was very helpful with practical steps on how to improve sketching techniques.

Very disappointing, the file for this book was corrupted and so I wasn't able to review it or even see it. I'm sure it's a great book and would be good for our readers though.

I'm so glad that I came back to this book even though I was unable to download and review it earlier. I've always wanted to draw better, but get discouraged every time. Kateri Ewing has helped me understand why. I'm a "look at the big picture" type of person. By reading this book I know now, if you want a nice detailed drawing you have to look at the small parts and not just the big picture, at least in the beginning. Look Closer is the key. The other great learning tool in this book is how to use various tools and why. Charcoal, graphite, and so on. Which is good for what and how to use them for the best outcome. I never gave any thought before on the differences because I just always used a #2 pencil. This book will help be "draw better". I just need to take my time and go through the lessons slowly and not be in such a "big picture" rush.

#netgalley #LookCloser,DrawBetter

What a fabulous book this is, not large but packed with information about drawing with various media. Firstly there are exercises in drawing, seeing and practice. Then we have sections on drawing with graphite pencil, charcoal sticks, pen and ink and lastly watercolour, all include projects that are very stimulating and informative. At the end of the book there is a galley of artwork.
I really found this book well explained, well written and very helpful. If you want to improve your drawing this is certainly a good book

At only 64 pages, this book is a relatively quick read that is chock full of practical advice and detailed step by step projects with tips that can be applied to any project the reader pursues.

Usually I don't find step by step walk throughs helpful, but the way Ewing handles them helped me to see how the principles taught could be applied in other projects. So I didn't feel like I was learning to draw a pear, but instead I was learning to draw anything by drawing a pear.

Perhaps the most valuable for me was the sketchbook exercises. It really encouraged me to do some more exercises to build eye-hand coordination.

This book has been very useful to me as I am new to drawing. The book clearly describes the tools needed and how to use them. I’ve used graphite and charcoal to this point but am intrigued now to try watercolor. Practice and attention to detail is everything in developing this skill and I can already see my progress.

This is great instruction book for working on the basics, and developing good solid and regular practise sessions. The projects are carefully selected and encourage you to look carefully at the subject and what you are doing. I loved the variety of illustrations especially the birds and was fascinated by the texture and level of details. Overall a good in depth instruction book, great for beginners or as a refresher. Thank You

Look Closer, Draw Better is a technique and exercise book for visual artists and learners by Kateri Ewing. Released 5th March 2019 by Quarto on their Rockport imprint, it's 128 pages and available in paperback format. I love drawing and calligraphy. I am at what I refer to as the 'keen amateur' level. This book has inspired me to try to be more diligent in my practice and journaling.

This is a well written book. The author has a concise and encouraging voice in her writing. The book is laid out logically and progresses from graphite and pencils, through charcoal, pen and ink, and watercolor. There are exercises scattered throughout along with highlighted sidebar tips. There's a tutorial project chapter with the same still life subject in two different media treatments (graphite and pen & ink), a showcase gallery, and a short resource list.

The really valuable takeaway for me was the author's guidance for training our ability to see what we are representing and separating it from what our brain is interpreting and presenting to us as reality.

This is a worthy addition to the artist's library and both beginners and more advanced students will find useful material here.

Five stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

This short book provides accessible guidance on learning to draw in various media, including graphite, charcoal, ink, and watercolor. It is copiously illustrated with exquisite, intricately detailed drawings by the author, who finds inspiration in the natural world. Ms. Ewing is an encouraging instructor, and when she breaks down her process into steps it makes the reader want to try it out (as if there were any hope of producing work as beautiful as the author's just from following a series of simple-sounding steps). I wish there had been more than one example of working each medium, perhaps with exercises for the reader on basic steps like breaking down natural forms into component shapes. Things get complicated really quickly with all the mixing of media as the book progresses. I bought pencils this morning and will start slowly with the instructions for drawing in graphite.

I find the Look Closer, Draw Better book to be very intriguing. It has several detailed projects that are great for the beginner to the advanced artist. It broaches several different aspects of natural objects and I believe this to be a reference source that I will use for many years to come. I would definitely recommend Look Closer, Draw Better to both new and old artist.

Like most art instruction books, I have mixed feelings. Does it provide useful information for beginners? Sure does. Is there anything unique here? Not really. If you are new to drawing and / or just want as many tips as possible, this will help you to understand why breaking up images into basic shapes will improve your drawing. So will a lot of other books. This one happens to be quite text heavy while I prefer books that rely on images more. Someone who prefers less images and more text descriptions will probably find this to be a 4-5 star book.

Kateri Ewing brings us excellent advice on slowing down and really seeing what we are seeing. She can help us old folks change bad habits and new art students choose the right track to bring to others what you see in your heart. This is a book I wish I had had 50 years ago, and one I will make sure my children have before times. Thank you!

I received a free electronic copy of this self-help book from Netgalley, Kateri Ewing, and Quarto Publishing Group - Rockport Publishers in exchange for an honest review. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me.

I received a digital advanced readers copy of this book from Netgalley.

I was immediately taken in by this book with how Ewing urges the reader to slow down and see differently. Another title I would recommend to a beginner as well as someone more experienced in the arts for some refreshing exercises.

The examples were astonishingly lovely. It's a little book, but it packs a punch. I hope to get this into the hands of my patrons soon!

Beautiful visuals, however, other than that I have to say that I found this book to be rather disappointing.

I expected to get a more in-depth approach at "looking closer". I was expecting some new approaches, maybe more on the author's experience, some "secret tips". Unfortunately, on relatively small space the author managed to cram in a lot of things — graphite, Charcoal, Pen and Ink, Watercolor, and then some projects.

If you're new to drawing and want to have a look and see what would seem like fun to you then maybe this is a book for you.

Unfortunately, since I have some experience with different practices I did not enjoy this. I wish I could say that at least some of the projects seemed like fun which I would want to try but unfortunately no.

I can only say with a good conscience that I recommend this book to beginners who want to learn more about tools and materials for different methods. Here I commend the author, and I'm saying very well done! As always I loved the part about understanding your paper which was my nemesis for a very long time.

If there's one thing I could snap my fingers and become, it's a person who can see like an artist. I've spent a lot of time trying to become better at drawing but my ability to slow down and really see isn't really all that great. I do everything fast and drawing is no exception.

If you have a ton of art books at home, like I do, this book doesn't really contain anything shockingly new. But there are two takeaways from my time with this lovely book.

1. Start practicing again. I used to draw daily but I gave it up. Getting better is about practice. She recommends having a 15-minutes a day practice. She recommends all the things I hate doing: blind contour, contour, etc but alas there's a reason those are recommended again and again. It's about training your hands, training your eyes. It's about getting out of your head (where I live so much of the time and it doesn't really serve me when drawing.) so 15 minutes a day it is. Who doesn't have 15 minutes?

2. Slow down. Go in layers, start with the light and build up. Slow down. Look. I feel the need to say it again: slow down.

Much of this book is graphite and charcoal and ink. I wanted to see the watercolor projects and they didn't disappoint. I found the steps more broken down than usual in most of the books I have on hand and I really appreciated that.

If you want some inspiration to take you back to the basics and remind you the core elements of how to create solid drawings, this is the book for you.

thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

This book has beautiful illustrations throughout, but if you already have some art books at home you will most likely have one that goes through the exact same exercises and gives the same advice.
Don't get me wrong, it's a solid book, BUT:
There is nothing new in this book in terms of techniques, advice or exercises, so I can only recommend it if you don't have any other art books at home yet or you are a beginner and are starting out.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with a copy of Look Closer, Draw Better.

The details in the illustrations are absolutely breathtaking! The mediums that are covered: graphite, charcoal, pen and ink, and watercolor. I wish I had this book back in college it would been a great supplement to drawing classes. The books includes tips and suggestions like keeping a daily sketchbook. While this book is great for beginners I think it would be helpful with intermediate skills.

In less than 65 pages, Kateri is able to teach how to create real life sketches by exploring different techniques such as graphite, charcoal, ink, and watercolor wash as well. The tutorials are easy to follow and well illustrated. Also, the author teach how improve the observation by focusing on the contour, the line, and the shadow of the subjects.

#LookCloserDrawBetter #NetGalley