I loved this book. It was very helpful and provided a lot of inspiration to sketch. The book contains information about drawing as well as instructions. The samples of artwork in the book are impressive and illustrate that simple lines can be used to craft a beautiful, powerful piece of art. I particularly like the section where the author shows his different interpretations of an artist to illustrate the different ways lines can produce a different piece of artwork with a different look, feel, and meaning.

If you've ever been captivated by the simplicity and elegance of line drawings, *The Art of the Line in Drawing* by Frederic Forest is a must-read. Forest, a renowned French artist, breaks down the process of creating expressive line art with clarity and insight. The book begins with the basics—introducing tools, materials, and fundamental techniques. But what truly sets it apart are the step-by-step lessons that guide you through drawing everything from human figures to landscapes and everyday objects.

Whether you’re a complete novice or someone looking to refine your skills, Forest’s approach is both encouraging and practical. He emphasizes the importance of finding your own style, experimenting, and enjoying the creative journey. The accompanying illustrations are not just instructional but also serve as a source of inspiration, showing the potential of line art to convey deep emotion and meaning with just a few strokes.

Whether you’re picking up a pencil for the first time or rediscovering your passion for drawing, *The Art of the Line in Drawing* will inspire you to see the beauty in simplicity and express yourself through the art of the line.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to review a temporary digital ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

Thanks to NetGalley for this review.
DNF
I am not an “arty” person however I love the line art trend. Unfortunately this book was written for more “arty” people than me. I also enjoy creating line arts digitally but this book really focused on the perfect imperfections of line art when drawn by hand. Not a bad book but not for me!

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

The Art of Line Drawing is a fantastic inspirational and informative non-fiction book for anyone who wants to learn more about line in drawing or to start trying it for themselves. I enjoyed reading how the author interprets what he sees into his art and the style in which he does so. The start of the book gives information on tools and equipment needed to start with and gives several examples to each area covered throughout the book. I can't wait to try my hand at this but feel a physical copy would be much better to use than a digital one which is what I've reviewed.

With THE ART OF THE LINE IN DRAWING, Frederic Forest has guided this eager amateur in seeing differently, looking at the world in terms of lines, shapes, and possibility. Enjoying his clear, elegant prose and abundant visual demonstrations and explanations, I found myself holding a pencil differently, seeing the underlying fundamentals and delighting in results I never expected from clumsy-handed me. Wonderful, wonderful foundational guide for amateur and aspirant, anyone who want to draw a line and communicate feeling, place, personality. I received a copy of this book and these opinions are my own, unbiased thoughts.

Find your own way for line drawing
Self-taught multi-disciplinary artist and author Frederic Forest presents his book "The Art of the Line in Drawing. A Step-by-Step Guide to Creating Simple, Expressive Drawings", published by Quarto Publishing Group – Quarry.
The book is divided into four parts: 1) Line Art, 2) Materials, 3) Getting Started, and 4) Drawing Lessons. For the Drawing Lessons Forest presents the idea based on a photo and the he explains what he wants to express, most often with the step-by-step for two interpretations of his idea. As goal of the book he states: "The idea of this one is not to teach you how to draw like me, but to share with you the pure pleasure of drawing and of each aspect that surrounds this skill. Always draw and paint for yourself first. Keep it fun. Never give up. Never stop. This book is for you, to pursue the thrill and develop the creative pleasure of drawing "p. 9). He gives a clear definition about line art. "Line as an element of art can be defined as the path that is formed between two points, usually a straight line, but not always. At its core, line drawing consists of creating distinct lines against a primarily solid background. Line art is often black and white, but as we will see later in this book, it can also be colorful. Elements like shading and color gradients are, however, absent, allowing the viewer’s focus to rest firmly on the lines themselves. Line in art can vary in color and width and length to evoke different responses in the viewer or to illustrate a visual illusion" (p. 16).
Forest presents his own work and the work of other artists using high-quality photos for the many examples. The book also contains a index. I highly recommend the book to artists who are interested in line art and to those who look for new ideas. It can also be used as a great present.
The complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley free of charge. I was under no obligation to offer a positive review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
#TheArtOfTheLineInDrawing #Netgalley

As a drawing novice, I found this book very helpful and reassuring. Starting from tools and explanations how to use them and to what effect, through easy to follow examples and exercises, "The Art of the Line in Drawing" seems like a great book for those who want to find more confidence while letting their creative juices flow.

Since my own artwork is heavily line-based (well, outline-based), Forest's approach still held fascination for me. This is the man behind many of the fashion sketches and magazine illustrations we see every day, and I never knew. Disclosing his thoughts behind each pen stroke, the use of negative space or of colour, these tutorials seemed very intimate. I especially enjoyed the way he readily provided the different versions he draws of the same subject, sharing why he would discard some. Would love to meet Forest and watch him at work one day.

Love this book!

It helped me begin my art practice again after almost a year of stress and inability to create.

It’s a simple, yet genuine and very helpful book for anyone looking for inspiration or just beginning to learn about drawing.

A very useful tool to have in your library. Well written and engaging. I hope to buy a copy when it comes out.

Very inspiring. Everything is described in a way that makes you want to pick up a pencil. And the results look good. So one can feel satisfied with the work after the first few strokes.

This is a wonderful book of drawing line. With many steps to getting to the final creative picure. The author shows different interpretations and ways to get there. You will see how you can use a picture as an inspiration and with few lines and thickness at the right places, you can go for a different feel in each drawing.

A fantastic book. I've always loved the beauty and simplicity of line drawing in art. Despite its simplicity, it's hard to convey what you want with just a few simple lines. Often harder than painting or drawing a full picture. This book gives great examples and ideas, and ways of interpreting. I definitely recommend it for any artists.

I'm not sure I could say this is a step by step guide, but it's certainly a helpful guide for someone who has (at least) a basic drawing ability

There's certainly enough I've taken from it that I'm eager to try out soon!

I received an advance copy for free from NetGalley, on the expectation that I would provide an honest review.

"The Art of the Line in Drawing" by Frederic Forest was a total game-changer for me! It's a step-by-step guide that helped me break through my creative block. Forest's approach is super insightful and inspiring. The book's emphasis on experimentation and finding my own style was just what I needed. The illustrations were stunning and gave me a clear roadmap to follow. Thanks to this book, I'm back to drawing and feeling more passionate about it than ever! It's a must-read for artists of all levels.

The Art of the Line in Drawing is a short and impactful book. I enjoyed reading about the author and his journey in art.

I had never considered line drawing by itself before and the tutorials in this book were very helpful in seeing the creative freedom in it. I personally don’t draw human figures often and for that reason, I appreciate that the first couple tutorials centre around men and women silhouettes, bodies and portraits. The details and step by step instructions were easy to follow. How Frederic Forest approaches each piece and the interpretation he is going for is insightful.

I enjoyed all aspects covered by this book. My favorite part was looking at photographs and seeing what Frederic created based on each. I will be referring to this book again in the future.

Many thanks to the publisher for a free copy of this book for an honest review.

I am no artist but I found this to be very interesting and informative. I used to love drawing as a kid and as an adult I’ve been wanting to get back into it just for fun but haven’t known where to start. I’m obsessed with line drawing and I really enjoyed the authors style and how he interprets what he sees. I was intrigued by his creative process and really appreciated the advice he gives on the materials he uses and the step by step examples.

I was once in a hotel lobby with a friend, who expressed admiration for the series of line drawings in the bar. He was impressed with how expressive such simple art could be. Needless to say I am now thinking of gifting him a copy of this book.

Beautifully presented, simple, minimal, lovely. The first third-or-so covers the artists portfolio, tools, and inspiration. Then we move on to "Drawing Lessons". The book takes us through a series of examples covering men, women, portraits, hands, feet, flowers, still life, cats, horses, swans, landscapes, objects, interiors and exteriors. More than enough to provide a starting point for anyone wanting try line drawing. What I liked most though was the insight into how the artist was *thinking* when they drew, and the multiple interpretations of each reference (especially the idea that the drawing can be nothing like the reference - the drawing could be the idea the artist has of what the reference could look like from a different angle). Really interesting stuff.

This is a great art book for those who want to draw like the author. He has a unique style where easily half of the image is missing but the lines he draws are all that are needed to capture it beautifully. It is not necessarily my preferred style but I appreciated the step by step examples of how he makes his spectacular drawings.

I read a temporary digital copy of this book for review.

This book is incredibly impressive on multiple levels. First of all, it's a great drawing manual, and I really appreciated that every step was supported not by an explanation of what the artist is doing but also why. It's not often you see this in a book.

On a deeper level, this book is a meditation on how an artist sees things around them, Instead of using it as a self study manual it can be read as an insight into the author's mind and an invitation to seeing things from a different perspective, especially for someone like me who never really tried any line drawing before.

Overall I really enjoyed going through this book and trying my own hand (clumsily) at the same drawings. The only complain, if it can even be called a complain, is that I want more! I'd really appreciated a few more animal drawing, a longer architecture section and so on. Nevertheless I'll definitely buy a paper copy of the book once it's out and will also recommend it to my fellow art enthusiasts.

I really enjoyed how the book simplified drawing into lines. I believe it’s a great start for someone learning to draw and looks at art from a different perspective.