Flipping through this book was such a big pleasure for me! Not least because I am a big fan of all three of the authors/artists and have been following them and admiring their work on social media for a long time.

Almost every tip is accompanied by a beautiful sketch as an example and, I can tell you, I ogled at practically every one of them!

I had reviewed Shari Blaukopf’s Working with Color which now forms part of this collection of four books from the Urban Sketching Handbook series. I really enjoyed that title and these four books formed into one is pleasure multiplied by four for me.

The information and pictorials are great for a beginner sketcher (or art journaler of which I am one) and also for more advanced sketchers who want to pick up a book for inspiration now and then.

Thank you Netgalley and Quarry Books for the review copy. This is my honest opinion.

The Complete Urban Sketching Companion is a tutorial guide for multiple techniques for sketching "in the wild". Due out 18th Aug 2020 from Quarto on their Quarry imprint the book is a compilation of previously released material (from the other books in the Urban Sketching series) plus some additional commentary and content. It's 256 pages and will be available in paperback format.

This is a concise and well made book covering some essential concepts for sketching backgrounds in an urban setting. The emphasis is on speed, fluidity, building technique and consistency, distilling often chaotic and kinetic reality down in the sketchbook reliably and aesthetically. Although the book is aimed at moderately advanced students to professionals, there are takeaways here for artists of every level.

The layout is logical; the first section introduces the tools, supplies and techniques, including a valuable subchapter on etiquette and valuing one's own work and growth as an artist.

The study tutorials are arranged thematically: architecture & cityscapes, understanding perspective, people & motion, and working with color. The overall feel of the book is rich in technique, useful, and varied and I saw so many things which got my fingers itching to jump in and start drawing. I think most (non)artists are a lot more shy about drawing on paper/media and this book has a lot of good suggestions for picking up materials and making a start.

Five stars. I really liked this book and will definitely use it going forward for my own drawing sessions. I would recommend it to artists of all levels. It could also make a valuable text for more formal classroom/group type instruction. There's a *lot* of information included here. The books from which the information in this volume was distilled are: The Urban Sketching Handbooks--Architecture and Cityscapes, Understanding Perspective, People and Motion, Working with Color . The authors have also included a useful checklist of personal goal challenges to tick off as they're achieved (draw an alley, a skyline, draw stairs going up and down from the vantage point, draw a meal as if the dishes were transparent, draw on paper which isn't white, draw people in a bar, sketch the same scene at different times of day, and many more). The challenge checklist could also make a nice starting point for assignments in a classroom or lecture setting.

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

Very well presented and useful guide for complete urban sketching. With many examples, beautiful illustrations and advices such as techniques, colors, tools, perspective, composition, how to capture motion etc.

Must have for all avid artists!

A comprehensive guide to many aspects of urban sketching. A huge range of technical aspects are focused on like perspective, proportion, architecture, color, etc. This would be a great resource for artists of all levels.

Thank you NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group for providing this ARC.

The Complete Urban Sketching Companion is exactly that: a companion for you or an artist you may know that gives helpful reminders of refining art technique as one freely sketches the world around them. This isn't a how-to book per se, but more of a helpful guide to inspire creativity and further mastery of pictorial arts. The flow of the book makes sense, the hints and reminders are helpful, and overall this book would make a great gift for yourself or a growing artist that you know.

A clear and well-presented primer for the budding architectural artist, or for anyone interested in sketching or painting the built environment, or painting generally.

This book is a delight. It is lovingly presented and starts from the very basic (what to carry if you want to sketch or paint on the go), building up gently through more advanced (did you know vanishing points go in all directions?), to give the learner (or the more advanced artist) the building blocks to paint the urban environment.

The examples are carefully picked to give an insight into both the techniques they illustrate, and the rough times to aim for (though the Eiffel Tower sketch is a challenging one to contemplate!). They are mainly either drawn or watercolours and although my pdf copy was a bit blurry at close magnification (I read a review copy), the pictures are taken from a number of artists’ portfolios and are uniformly superb.

The author is clearly passionate about the subject and although the book can be read in one sitting, the reader is encouraged to go out and sketch, with exercises which are set widely enough so the reader can pick his or her own environment to sketch. I picked up new ideas and learned from every page.

I will certainly be buying this book when it comes out as it is both an excellent teaching aid, and a piece of art in its own right.

I will be adding this book to my personal collection. I enjoyed its illustrations, clear writing and its ease of use. It does not intimidate me even though I am a beginning artist to sketching.

This book is really excellent for art enthusiasts and even for architecture and design students.

The content really goes in depth to explain the different techniques needed to make landscape drawings and paintings, in an urban setting.

It starts off with the supplies needed and etiquettes of making art, and includes well thought out, detailed chapters on cityscapes and architecture, perspective, people and motion and working with color. It is really quite comprehensive.

I particularly liked all of the illustrations, as they were so well done, and detailed.

This is certainly a must have for artists who want to sketch and paint urban architecture. Not only does it teach you to draw the buildings, it also has complete chapters on drawing people and even how to color/ paint your work.

Thank you to the artists/authors, publishers and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC for an honest review.

This is such a lovely book, both succinct and creative. Especially useful if you major in architecture or interior design. I wish there were more focus on pencil/coal sketches (my favourite mode of drawing), but regardless, I enjoyed it all the same. The way the concept of perspective is explained in the book makes this complicated concept easier to manage. With committed practise, I believe some of the sketches in the book are easy to replicate. I loved the worksheet at the end of the book. A few more of those, arranged as levels, would have been nice.

I found this book really helpful. I have always struggled with perspective but here it all seemed to make sense. I also found the page layout kept me interested. A good book to keep close at hand for quick reference and inspiration.